Not a Pet
by wuogkat
Summary: Bella ponders Laurent's description of her as Edward tries to talk their way out of trouble with the Volturi. Knowing that Edward would never change her on purpose, Bella takes her mortality into her own hands. Reader beware this is kind of a violent.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I've picked taken my own interpretation of what Bella would do in Italy and ran with it. This story picks up in New Moon just after Edward, Alice and Bella are invited to join the Volturi and considers what could happen if Bella decided to take her mortality into her own hands. I was inspired by a couple of other stories on the forum but I'm moving a slightly different direction with it.**

Suddenly it was like I was listening through a tunnel. Caius' voice took on an echo that wasn't present in the room before. Edward was arguing with him. Aro was making a point and I had to summon the courage to speak. We were going to die. Edward was never going to change me, he had no intention of it, Aro would know. He was so stubborn sometimes. Then, I was suddenly reminded of what Laurent had said in the meadow. He used the word "pet" to describe me. "Pet," is that what I was? A sudden rush of bravery brought on by anger seized me.

"May I speak?" My voice was clearer and louder than I expected. Edward tensed, his eyes narrowed. I was also suddenly aware that I had interrupted someone. There was silence. Edward pushed me further behind him and I unsuccessfully attempted to move away.

"Peace, Caius." Aro was staring at me as I peered from behind Edward. He touched hands with Caius and Marcus before addressing me. "Bella, you have something to say?" He spoke to me like I was the dog, a loved dog but still a dog, but I guess that at this point I was the cocker spaniel. I regretted speaking but now that I had started I had to finish, there was no going back. At this point I really had no choice. I knew Edwards feelings, he'd rather I die than change me.

"I am tired of being a pet." Edward released me, shocked. Could he really think that there was another word for this? If I couldn't be his equal then what was I? I stepped out from behind him and shakily stepped forward. The blood felt like it was draining from my body; I was colder than before. "I know Edward's feelings about changing me and Carlisle will only change the dying. As you know, last year Carlisle and Edward had an opportunity to allow the change to occur and they prevented it. They have done this at my peril. In the past six months I have narrowly avoided being killed by two vampires while Edward was busy doing whatever it is that he's been doing rather than protecting me."

"Bella…" His voice was weak behind me. I felt a small blush on my cheeks as he said my name. My resolve wavered a hair. I thought of the word "pet' again and my face flushed crimson, tears welled up in my eyes. I was angry again; I needed to remain angry. I clenched my fists.

"Edward, allow Bella to finish." Aro was smiling; it turned my stomach. I didn't know if Edward would forgive me for what I was about to do. I wasn't sure if that would matter anymore. I had come to save him but I had no guarantee that he would come back with me or that he would stay.

"I want the change." Was that my voice? It sounded confident. Oh thank goodness it was confident. I sighed with relief and shook just a bit. "Aro, you know his mind, he will not change me. I cannot pretend to understand his reasons for this but in order for me to have the…" Oh no please don't let me cry. My breath was ragged and I struggled to compose myself. One deep breath down to the toes, in and out. A tear slipped over he edge of my lashes and I reached to wipe it quickly.

"Bella, don't…"

"The respect that I deserve..." I talked over Edward's protests, "the strength that I need to protect myself, or any hope at a real relationship with him. I must be changed. I had hoped that Edw" it hurt to say his name, I let I trail off. "I had hoped that HE could be prevailed upon to change his mind but it seems that he is too stubborn and masochistic to give me what I want…" No, wanting was too weak. "What I deserve." My voice was strong again. Something was happening between Edward and Alice behind me.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I just played around with them a bit because I couldn't keep this possibility out of my head.**

"What did you expect?" I heard Alice hiss at him. They had been having one of their silent conversations while I was speaking. "She asked me to change her on the plane over here Edward. It's going to happen regardless of what your religious views happen to be."

He was in front of me now, facing me. My breath caught in my throat. I studied the floor to avoid looking at him.

"I need to finish Edward. I need to ask." My voice was weak.

"Bella, not now, not this way." I was crying. A member of the guard laughed and I turned red from head to toe again.

"You're embarrassing me." I whispered, "If you've decided not to change me then I will ask here. I can't do this anymore. I'm not your pet. Don't I deserve to be your equal?" I looked up at him, still crying. His face crumpled. He fell to his knees. How was I hurting him? Somehow I was hurting him but it was necessary. He left me in the forest, not the other way around, had he forgotten that?

"You're not my pet. You've never been a pet." Edward begged on his knees.

"Do I have to join you for you to change me?" my voice was softer but still determined as I tore my gaze from Edward to Aro.

"That is what is generally expected." Aro's reply held less pleasure in it than his tone from the prior conversation. He wanted me and Edward and Alice and he wouldn't just change me and let me go. I sighed. Edward would not follow me here. I knew what the Volturi opinion of my intended diet was, would I be allowed to be a 'vegetarian' here?

I looked down at Edward, his face was pained, his eyes pleading. I didn't need his gift to know what he was thinking. He would make me promises now but I had no way of knowing if he would keep them. He would try to change my mind and leave me in the human world again.

"I cannot be without Edward, and I want to live on Carlisle's diet." I looked into Aro's eyes. "Is there a way that this can be arranged?"

"Absolutely not!" Caius raged, stepping menacingly toward me. I backed up instinctually as Edward stood up and Alice stepped behind me protectively.

"Brother, may we consider this? I feel that we should deliberate before making any rash decisions regarding the girl. She does not know what she is asking or the amount of willpower and inconvenience such a diet will require." Aro sighed as members of the guard took aggressive stances. What had I done? I had made things worse.

"If you survive this, we have to talk." Edward mumbled furiously. I was shaking. He and Alice continued their protective positions in front and behind me.

"You have no right to that anger." Alice said aloud for my benefit. I heard his sharp intake of breath. She must be relating what Charlie told her in the kitchen, how long ago was that? Was it only a day ago? It felt like years. Everything had changed.

"You promised me!" his eyes turned on me, filled with anger and hurt and rage. I backed into Alice.

"That promise was in exchange for one I never wanted that you couldn't keep. It wasn't like you never existed! It was like you ripped my heart out and left me to die! What did you expect me to do?!" I was screaming and crying. There was a rage inside of me along with the sadness that I thought would destroy me. I was being ripped apart by my own emotions. "I can't go back to life without you as a human. This body isn't strong enough for that. I can't take care of myself, I can't even breathe properly half the time." My hand was on my chest again, my breath came in ragged bursts. Alice was holding me, stroking my hair as I collapsed in tears. She and Edward were conversing silently again. The Volturi had suspended debate to watch my temper tantrum. I blushed and sunk as far into Alice as I could. Her cold skin felt good against the flame that moved under mine. I was physically and emotionally exhausted, I could feel the rawness from nearly drowning creep back into my throat.

"I'm sorry" he tried to touch me and I pushed him away, curling deeper into Alice than before. I was frail and delicate and I had never felt that way before. My bones felt like glass my heart was a fragile bird hobbling with a broken wing. If he touched me I would break.

There was a noise at the door.

"It seems that our deliberations will have to continue after the meal." Aro broke from his discussion. "Alice, Edward, Bella, would you follow Felix to the lobby until we are prepared to give our decision? I would hate for any tragic mistakes to be made during dinner."

I closed my eyes and was moved at vampire speed to the elevator. I heard the voices of tourists in the hall and didn't connect that the tour was actually the meal for the Volturi until I heard the screaming. I sobbed. Felix laughed.

"Shhhh, it's okay." Alice soothed me. "For the moment, you're safe." She cooed as if I was a small child. I was placed on a sofa in the lobby. I curled into the fetal position and wept for I don't know how long.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details and exploring another response from Bella because it kept me up at night.**

"Bella" his voice was gentle but it was like a knife in my heart, "I'm sorry Bella. I'm so sorry. I've behaved in an unforgivable manner. I – I thought that with time – I thought that with time perhaps you would find someone else and have – have a normal human life." He was crouched next to the sofa now. I was curled away from him, sobs wracking my body. "I thought that you would adjust, that you would want the things that I can't give you." He ran his hand through my hair and down my back. Unwillingly, my body reacted. The sobs calmed, my heart beat again, I was breathing. After all the pain he had caused he could still calm me with one touch.

"You can't do this. It's not fair." I whispered. He continued to pet me, like the dog.

"Do what Bella? What am I doing?" He tried to turn me toward him but respected my choice when I resisted. I couldn't look at him with my heart missing like this. I still felt wounded and bleeding; I was dying.

"You can't manipulate me this way. If you loved me that much you would change me or you never would have left me. I must really just be a pet to you. A loved pet that you're oddly attracted to but a pet nonetheless." My heart ached again. I almost welcomed the pain this time. I knew that the pain was real, it didn't lie or leave or pretend to be noble when it was really being selfish.

"Don't you see Edward, you broke her?" Alice was at my feet, sitting on the couch. I was broken, wasn't I? Very broken.

"I stopped swimming when I discovered that the current was too strong." I whispered. "I just didn't have enough fight left in me. I could hear you Edward, you were furious with me but I just stopped trying. It was too painful." For a moment I could almost hear the gears in Edwards brain turning. He thought this was a metaphor but I looked at Alice's horrified expression and discovered that she was setting him straight.

"I didn't jump off the cliff intending to die." I corrected and brought myself up to a seated position sensing that some more explanation would be in order. "I just wanted to hear your voice again, I promise, I just wanted to hear you, to know that you weren't a figment of my imagination, that you had indeed loved me and existed." I breathed as the tears streamed down my face. "I had no other way to be close to you. Then I hit the water and I couldn't see anything. I couldn't find up or down. I was disoriented and you were yelling at me to fight but I was lost and swimming the wrong direction. I was heading deeper instead of toward the surface. Just like all of my efforts to ease this pain have led me deeper instead of out." My eyes were on my hands. I saw a flicker of movement as Edward's hands flashed to the scar at my hairline. It was relatively new and still puckered in a deep red line instead of fading into white. "It's from the motorcycle." I confessed as his cold fingers brushed my hair out of the way. I attempted to suppress the thrill that went down my spine as he ran his finger across it. At that moment I wished that I wasn't hopelessly in love with him.

"Motorcycle?" Somehow he sounded horrified and amused at the same time.

"Motorcycle," I admitted. "It was the closest I could get to running with you." I sighed; I was a pathetic looser. I attempted to replace the love of my life with a motorcycle. He surveyed the many other new scars that were visible, including the large crescent of cool skin on my hand. He needed no explanation for that one.

"How do we move on when I've hurt you so badly?" He whispered.

"We?" the word was almost meaningless to me.

"Yes, we." He gently made an attempt to turn my chin up to his.

"But you," my breath caught, "You don't want me." I felt the breaking again and pulled my arms to my chest to hold myself together. I was rocking involuntarily pulled into a ball on the couch; my arms were pulled around my still damp jeans.

Alice hissed.

"Is that what you told her?" Anger rolled off of Alice in a wave. I felt it break over me and into Edward who staggered. "You told her you didn't want her?" She was thinking more underneath. I didn't get all of the subtext. "And what did you say about me? Did you tell her that I didn't want to be her friend? I love her too Edward! You had no right!"

"But she didn't argue! She put up such a feeble protest that I thought…" his breath was a sharp intake, "I thought that she would be able to walk away with all of us gone! She didn't fight for me or you when I told her."

"You really have no clue about women do you, brother? She trusted you not to lie to her. She believed you because she loves you. You could tell her that the sky is purple and she would probably buy it just because you said it. Honesty is important to mortals you idiot! Maybe you don't see it but they don't fight like we do, she has no reason to have expected you to lie to her on this!"

Gianna was now standing at her desk and unplugging her headset.

"I know that sometimes you forget that not everyone knows everyone else's secrets like you do but how was she to know?" Alice's rage continued and I flinched for him. I was too tired to participate in the argument. Gianna was approaching with an air of authority in her stride. Alice opened her mouth and stopped, her eyes clouded over. I looked to Edward his face was horror struck.

"No." It was as if he had been punched. "They can't." His face was so pained that it broke my heart to look at it.

"The decision has been made." Alice uttered the words ominously.

"I'm going to have to ask you to settle down, you're disturbing the peaceful atmosphere that we try to maintain here." Gianna scolded. There was a beep and she ran back to her desk as if her existence depended on answering it.

"Bella, I lied to you last fall." Edward filled my view he was desperate for time, "I'm sorry for everything that I've put you through and I'm sorry for this. I don't know why I thought that this would work. But you have to believe me when I tell you that you are still my life. You are the only thing that I live for. I want you. I want _you_ more than anything"

"I can't…"

"Is it too late?" He looked to Alice. "Is it Jacob?" He was pulling more information from Alice now, his expression pained. "I can't leave you to a werewolf. He's the one thing that's less safe for you than me. That is supposing that we can find a way to get you out of here."

"Not Jacob." I said and turned to Alice, "What did they decide?"

"I don't want to tell you." Alice was staring at Edward, "Their decision is made but your reaction is still undetermined and I don't think I can…" she shook her head.

"We have very little time. I need you to know that I can't live without you Bella. I will never leave you again unless you ask me to. I just need to know before we go in what you want." He stopped as if he was in pain. " Do _you _still want me? Will you take me back?"

I could only nod. I didn't have enough breath to speak.

He kissed me. His lips were more passionate, more urgent that I had ever known. It was almost as if he was trying to draw me into him, to swallow me up. I didn't care about anything else in that exact instant I would give him anything and everything that he wanted. I was his again. My heart sang, there was no hole there. I wasn't bleeding and lifeless on the floor any longer. I forgot everything, one hand was in his hair the other sliding up and down his back, he was doing the same.

And then, the noise came, a slight throat clearing. We hadn't separated but suddenly Edward was writhing in my arms. I opened my eyes and saw Jane. I felt something from inside me lash out. Edward stopped convulsing and looked at me wide eyed as did Alice and Jane. Jane looked like she had been slapped.

"A decision has been made." Jane pouted. Apparently she didn't like the decision. A wave of nausea ran through my stomach though, rust and salt, blood. Her eyes were a brighter shade of red than before. Her face and clothing were immaculate the only thing that betrayed her meal was the smell still fresh on her breath and the eyes.

She was walking away. Edward had recovered and pulled me to my feet. I was dizzy from the nausea and the kiss. I stumbled forward as he held me at his side.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night.**

"Alice?" he asked. She shook her head. The decision was bad news to Edward and to Alice, and somehow to Jane as well. What could it possibly be? I pulled what little courage I could find together and marched down the hall having to almost run to keep up with Jane. "Bella, I need to know what you did?" Edward whispered.

"What are you taking about?" I stared up at him bewildered still trying to walk and not trip over my feet.

"You did something…" Alice nodded.

"I need to know Bella." Edward entreated. He thought that I was deceiving him somehow.

"What?" I stumbled and he caught me.

"You should really stop the chatter." A sickening chill rose up my spine as Demetri and Felix fell in behind us again. Edward shuddered and stared at Felix for a moment.

"I can't help what I think." Felix chuckled darkly.

"What is it?" I looked at Edward who seemed to be barely holding his calm.

"Felix is enjoying torturing me." He breathed.

In the elevator Edward took a protective position between Felix and me like I was in imminent danger. It was unsettling to say the least. My heart was pounding out of my chest. I worked very hard to keep my breathing even. I clutched Edward's hand so hard that it hurt me. Whatever the answer was, it wasn't good and I had to be strong. I would show no fear.

Felix eyed me in a very disturbing manner. I blushed. He wasn't looking at me like I was food. Edward growled, I pulled him closer into me feeling exposed somehow. I glanced down to make sure that I was indeed clothed properly. The elevator stopped and we filed out and back down he hall. This time we were taken to another room. The smell of blood as we passed where our previous audience had been was overwhelming. My knees buckled for a second and I was swept quickly past the door. They were laughing at me again.

"No, she can smell it." Edward defended me against wordless accusations.

"You have to be imagining that. Humans can't smell blood." Demetri scoffed.

"This one can." I breathed.

"This one, is all sorts of trouble." Jane spat from ahead of us at the door.

"What is she really?" Felix asked. We had stopped and he was appraising me with those unsettling red eyes again.

"What do you mean, what am I?" I squared my shoulders.

"She's human, her parents are human and she hasn't been changed into anything else." Edwards free hand was on my shoulder. "You can't sense her either." Edward smiled at him. "It disturbs you, so you want to tear her down to an object because she's a mystery."

There was no verbal answer from Felix.

Jane knocked on the door and two members of the guard opened it from the other side. Inside was a luxurious sitting room. Aro, Marcus, and Caius were seated at the far end in chairs that much more resembled thrones. They were lounging, relaxed. Marcus barely looked at us and touched Aro's hand once more. Aro nodded and stood, his bodyguards following him.

"Jane." His voice was dripping with honey as she came to him. He held out his palm and she touched it. "Oh my!" He smiled.

Edward sighed.

"It seems that Bella has been holding back that gift of hers, brothers." His smile didn't touch his eyes. I stood firm next to Edward in the middle of the room summoning strength from some unknown place inside me. I prayed that that reserve of strength would last.

"I am tired." It was as if someone else had spoken but the words were definitely coming from my mouth. "What is your decision?" I was firm and defiant. Edward's jaw nearly hit the floor as he stared at me.

"Such spirit, such fire, from a mortal." Aro was nearly laughing.

"I will no longer be toyed with." I warned. Caius and Marcus were on the edge of their seats. Jane seemed to be focused on me with that same frustrated gaze from earlier.

"Use Edward." I heard a mumble. As Jane's gaze shifted so did something in the air around me.

"No" I felt some sort of awareness of Edwards body next to me, somewhat stronger than usual and felt some strain like a headache threatening to overtake me. My face pulled in without any intent or emotion on my part.

"Stop!" Aro ordered and the headache went away. "I want her alive! Don't you see that she'll kill herself to protect him? She is not strong enough to exercise this gift and it will rip her apart if we continue."

I pulled back in on myself mentally and collapsed to the floor.

"What did you do?" Edward crouched beside me whispering as if he could have a private conversation with me in a room full of vampires. "No?" his eyes were questioningly fixed on Jane and then Aro. His head spun around as he listened to several other thoughts in the room.

"Bella," he whispered. "Bella, I need to now that you're alright."

"I'm fine." I lifted my head with some difficulty.

"Jane, if you've hurt her…" Edward's voice was dangerous, icy.

"She did it to herself." Jane snapped, "She shielded you to protect you from discomfort. It's not like I can cause permanent damage. It was her choice to protect you." She sighed and smiled in her evil vindictive way.

"My, that bond is very strong." Aro observed and looked to one of his guard letting go of her hand. She shook her head. Edward smiled and kissed the top of my head. Several vampires flinched at this, Jane included.

"No, Aro I don't know why Chelsea can't break the bond that Bella has on myself and Alice." He paused, "No, I don't think that Bella could explain it either." Annoyance spread over Edwards face, he shook his head. "It is her decision. Why don't you put these thoughts to words so that she can speak for herself, Caius? She is not too weak for that."

Edward gently brought me to my feet. He looked into my eyes, smoothed my hair and nonchalantly attempted to check my pulse on my neck. I wondered why he would need to, couldn't he just hear my heart? He looked relieved. I on the other hand was utterly confused. Alice was silent beside me.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night.**

"Bella, I am prepared to do something that I have never done before." It was Caius who spoke. "I am going to offer you the choice of staying with us or going, either way you must become an immortal immediately. You will inadvertently kill yourself if you continue to use this gift of yours with only the strength of a mortal. If one of the Cullens will change you, you may go with them but if we change you, you will remain with us for at least a few years until you are under control." I stared at him still bewildered.

"Dearest Bella, it would most certainly be a waste if you were to accidentally hurt yourself." Aro's voice was like music. Alice looked shocked, something had shifted, changed since we came into the room. She smiled lightly and turned to Edward.

"Edward," I breathed still not grasping the situation.

"Marry me, that's my only condition, just marry me first." His grip was the only thing holding me up.

"Why?" it didn't make sense. I could tell that no one other than Alice understood either.

"I never want to be separated from you again and I want to do this right." His eyes were still searching mine. I looked to Alice who was gesturing frantically and looked like she was about to cry.

"That's your only condition." All of a sudden it seemed so small, so mundane, so human. Days or even minutes ago I would have denied this request but now it seemed too simple. I only had to jump one hurdle. "What about my parents? What will people think?"

"Bella, might I suggest that you're worrying about something much more insignificant than the commitment you are already willing to make to Edward? You are committing to change your very being in order to be with him and yet you hesitate at the thought of marriage?" I didn't recognize the voice. I was staring into Edward's eyes, which were currently like onyx. I lifted my head to realize that it had to be Marcus speaking. Caius shot an appalled look at him and Aro's face seemed to soften.

"Do you now understand my fascination Aro?" Edward was still staring into my eyes as I deliberated. "Her mind works differently and I cannot hear it. I love her and she is the only person who has secrets from me. I cannot comprehend what goes on behind these eyes. Her actions have proven her to be selfless, brave, and mature. She is so purely good that I almost can't bear it. I would do anything for her. She is my life and if she will have me again I will be hers for eternity. My beautiful Bella." I blushed with a fire like I've never known. He was beaming at me with so much love that I felt like I could fly.

"So, are we to have a wedding?" Aro sounded amused. "You cannot make him wait forever while you are still human. It would be foolish, you will eventually tire of standing in my study and I can assure you that I will not be offering you human comforts while you deliberate." Was he teasing me? He was, Aro was teasing me.

"Yes" my voice broke with a sob and I crashed into him. His marble body pressed up against my soft fragile shape. He held me as tightly as he could safely hold me.

"Ah, a wedding, how quaint!" Aro smiled. "I believe that we have some clergymen at our disposal, don't we dear ones?" There was an affirmative response.

"Alice" I couldn't let go of Edward for fear that I would fall.

"I'll take care of it." I could hear her bouncing up and down next to us.

"Quickly, before she changes her mind." Edward spoke softly and I pretended not to hear him. The rest was kind of a blur. I didn't want to let go of him for fear that it was all a dream but we were ushered away to an apartment where I could take care of my human needs. Alice busily made phone calls through the night and I curled up into Edward's arms and slept better than I had since he left. I was finally whole again. There were no more nightmares.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews, I thought I was done but I wanted to explore something a bit darker that Meyer hints at in the book.**

I had forced Edward to go hunting. His eyes had turned so black that it was frightening and even though he insisted that he felt no strain in holding off his urges I felt that I was greedy for keeping him locked up in my suite in Volterra. He needed to hunt. At the moment, I was alone. Alice and Edward rarely left me unguarded here and refused to let me in on the reason. I was certain that it wasn't knowledge that I wanted.

Charlie and Rene had been an issue. It was Caius who came up with a solution to my parental issues. Alice and I had been convicted for grand theft auto, disturbing the peace, and running through a public fountain. Actually, I was just an accessory to grand theft auto and Alice hadn't run through the fountain but that didn't seem to matter much. Carlisle had come to Volterra this week as part of the cover story. To the best of Charlie and Rene's knowledge I was currently rotting in an Italian prison waiting for Carlisle's contacts at the US embassy to make things better. I guessed that it was better than actually facing Charlie. Grand theft auto didn't seem that farfetched after all of the trouble I had been in this year. The ultimate outcome of my run in with the Italian justice system would be that a prominent family in Volterra would take pity on me and agree to keep me under house arrest for several years, after which I would disappear on my way home, presumably dead. The Volturi had insisted on this condition. I was sad but recognized the necessity of protecting my family.

In reality, Edward and I would be married in two days and would sped a few more in a villa away from civilization while I underwent the change. We would remain in Europe at least until no one bothered to look for me anymore. It was what I wanted, but it was also very frightening. I took a deep breath and focused on the room to stop myself from shaking. My suite, or prison cell if you like, was actually quite nice. The ceilings were quite high and everything was covered in embellishments. I had a bedroom, which is apparently a luxury in a building where so few inhabitants sleep, a bathroom – yet another luxury, and a descent sized sitting room. A little Italian man who spoke no English brought my meals. Edward often conversed with him in perfect Italian, it was very attractive to say the least. I suspected that due to his age that he would be dinner for the Volturi sometime soon. Edward wasn't very forthcoming on those details. That was another sickening thought so I pushed it away. Everything furnishing the room was antique with the exception of a flat screen television and a computer both of which were far enough advanced that I was positive that these were not available in stores.

A knock on the door interrupted my attempts to change my train of thought. Perhaps Alice was back with the dress. Ah, yes… the dress that somehow had to be shipped from the Cullen's house in New Hampshire. She was really going to have to explain that one now that Edward was gone for the day. I was beginning to plan my attack as I opened the door and was instantly stuck with terror.

Felix.

My heart stopped for a second and then whirled out of control. He was dark and menacing in my doorway. I went with my immediate reaction and tried to slam the door shut. He stopped it before I had moved an inch. His eyes were flame red, he had fed, but he wanted something. I wasn't keen on finding out what exactly that was.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews, I thought I was done but I wanted to explore something a bit darker that Meyer hints at in the book. *So, this is embarrassing….I mixed up Felix and Demetri, hence the update – problem fixed.***

"That's not a very warm reception." He was looking at me again in that uncomfortable way that made me want to cover myself. I held my ground and tried to find words through the fear that was currently muddling my brain. He reached for my hair and I shrunk back. Holding my ground suddenly seemed much less important than not letting him touch me.

"Sorry," I blinked and shook my head to clear it, "What do you want?" My voice was shaking and he smiled at that. His attitude and intentions toward me were becoming clear in my mind, as was Edward's previous reaction to him.

"I think that we both know what I want." He smiled. I stumbled a step back as if stuck. What he wanted was nothing that I wanted anything to do with.

"No" I said as firmly as I could with shaking limbs. His smile deepened and he came closer. This monster was most definitely used to getting exactly what he wanted. "Whatever it is, my answer is no."

"Don't be like that Bella." He allowed me to step back again as he advanced into the room his voice was persuasive, unnatural. "I can give you more than he can, you know?" I turned my head slightly to my shoulder not understanding this agenda of his. I was fairly certain that his goal was to hurt me but now he seemed to be attempting to change my mind. Did he think that he appealed to me?

"No"

"Bella, don't be foolish. You think that your 'vegetarians'," that word was a joke to him, "are strong, that they're somehow noble." He paced around the room a bit too quickly for me to be comfortable with emphasizing what he was. "I tell you that they're unnatural and weak. Human blood makes us stronger. Didn't he tell you that?" He stopped to caress an ancient handwritten copy of Shakespeare's Complete Works that I had been privileged to borrow from the library. The way he touched it was greasy, oily, bordering on lewd.

"That doesn't matter to me." I could barely speak through my fear. The door was still open. I wouldn't be much safer out in the halls, I'd been instructed not to go out without an escort. Could I find Alice or Carlisle? Were they close? He probably wouldn't be attempting this if help were anywhere nearby. I couldn't imagine him doing this without his bases. My eyes fell on the door for a fraction of a second too long and he was there before I could make a step toward it. It clicked with a finality that made my stomach churn and a knot build in my throat.

"It should." He was behind me, his breath in my hair. I felt tears building in my eyes and a sob formed a bubble in my throat. He touched my hip and my breath caught in fear. "Being a member of the guard gives you power. You could have that with me." He moved my hair to breathe on my neck. I was petrified, my hands balled in fists, but fighting would be useless. Edward had demonstrated that for me in the meadow last year. I didn't have a prayer. His fingers trailed down my neck and I shivered in fear and rage. "You may not be much now but after you're one of us, I daresay that you will be something to look at." I could vomit right there.

"Please leave." I begged. My voice was breaking. Something told me that begging wouldn't spare me. Felix would not be prevailed upon that way. The only thing that mattered to him was strength and that I didn't have.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews, I thought I was done but I wanted to explore something a bit darker that Meyer hints at in the book.**

***So, this is embarrassing….I mixed up Felix and Demetri, hence the update – problem fixed.***

He grabbed me and I could only pray that he was only going to kill me. I knew better than that when he effortlessly moved me into the other room, the bedroom. A soft sob escaped my lips. My mind raced to save me.

"Aro will be put out if you kill me." The thought came to me as I spoke, perhaps fear of Aro would save me.

"I'm not gong to kill you," He touched me lightly again and I fought another wave of nausea, "and if I do kill you like this your Edward will be the prime suspect. If I don't kill you," he pulled me into him more roughly than I was used to but not enough to actually hurt me "I'm going to make it so that he won't want you anymore."

"He won't abandon me like that." I managed to put some feeling into the words. I could feel some sense of self-preservation in my mind reaching out. In my mind I was screaming Edward's name.

"Edward has some very puritanical thoughts about intimacy." Felix's hands were wrapped around my waist, he whispered in my ear.

"Rape isn't intimacy." His grip tightened and I had trouble breathing. Alice! I needed Alice! Someone, anyone with above human strength to save me from this monster would be welcomed. My mind lashed out. I didn't know if I could do anything aside from being a shield but I willed my mind to be useful, somehow. I was in grave danger. My head was swimming.

"What are you doing?" He stiffened with a sudden jerk that almost sent my stomach into my throat. "You're doing something? What is it?" He demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I could barely get the sentence out. He threw me into the bed. I knocked into it painfully because it was too tall for me to fall onto. Instead, the substantial frame bruised my shins and my head knocked into one of the posts. I caught a glimpse of the floor rushing toward me just before everything went black.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews.**

The blackness lifted slowly. I startled, jumping half out of my skin and pulling my knees to my chest. I was on the bed, in different clothes, in the dark. Arms were quickly around me and I struggled hopelessly for my life.

"Bella stop." The velvet voice was a whisper. I obeyed not out of fear but because I knew and trusted the voice. "You've been hurt." He said. I cried turning into his body, he held me. My head was screaming in pain.

"Do you remember what happened?" Carlisle's voice came from the corner of the room. My mind raced back to what had just happened, to why I was scared and why my head hurt so badly.

"Felix," I stiffened and my breath came in ragged gasping bursts. "He threw me and I blacked out, did he…?" I stopped horrified. Carlisle turned on the light for my benefit as Edward soothingly caressed my hair, I could feel his muscles tense and his breathing stop though. "He wanted…" I couldn't finish the sentence; it would kill me.

"I think I know what he wanted." Edward was too still. "He's thought about it before."

"Did he?" I brought myself to stare into his eyes. He shook his head and I relaxed some. He gently laid me down onto the bed and tucked the blanket around me before curling himself into me. I was safe. I was safe. I could breathe, it hurt but I could breathe. Carlisle knelt beside the bed and took my wrist in his hand out of habit. He wasn't using his fingers to check my pulse but his hearing had focused on the sound, the charade was kept up out of habit. After a few seconds he nodded to Edward. I was suddenly aware that more than my head hurt.

"How bad Carlisle?" I asked. He looked at me a bit apprehensively. He didn't want to tell me.

"In all honesty, you've had worse. I've treated you for worse." There was a slight smile on his face now. "You're mostly just bruised. The biggest concern is your head; although, you do have some bruising around your abdomen and on your legs." He stopped for a moment before approaching what he really wanted to say. My mind went through a series of worst-case scenarios. "We were concerned mostly because of what Alice saw and what we both heard." I was puzzled.

"Make that what the three of us heard." Edward added and Carlisle's eyes widened with shock.

"You were out of the city." Carlisle whispered.

"I was." Edwards voice was nearly void of emotion.

"I'm sorry, you have to explain…" my head ached.

"Bella," Alice flitted into the room now, she had been listening in the dark sitting room. "Bella, I saw him hurting you and then from three floors down I heard your voice screaming inside my head. Carlisle heard you all the way in Aro's study."

"How?" I shook my head.

"It must be some sort of defensive reaction." Carlisle mused. "I think that you somehow inverted your shield. It was very dangerous and nearly killed you. You were actually lucky that he knocked you out." Edward growled. "It's true son; the injury that she caused herself is much worse than the bump on the head he gave her." He was still growling. "Edward! I don't like him any more than you do! I'm not defending his actions! What he did and his intentions toward Bella were inexcusable but if she had kept up using her shield like that she would have died in seconds."

Edward relaxed just a hair. The growling had stopped.

"I still don't know what I did." My brain was struggling to keep up.

"What did you hear Edward? We just assumed that you happened to return at the right time." Carlisle was still appraising my condition.

"I heard Felix through Bella and then Bella's frantic calling for me and Alice." He kissed my hair and continued, "I thought that it was just in my head because I had never heard Bella's mind before and I was well out of range but I came back to check." He took a ragged breath, "That's where I caught up with the two of you." I was suddenly very concerned about what part of that conversation he might have heard.

"I got here first." Alice sat down on the bed. "Felix was already gone. You were on the floor here next to the bed. Carlisle wasn't far behind me he kept me from moving you until we could get a stretcher and a neck brace. Carlisle and Edward took you to the hospital." Her eyes fell, "I'm so sorry Bella. I should have waited for Carlisle to come back before going downstairs to get the package. I should have checked the future." The guilt was going to crush me. It was bad enough that Edward felt guilty, now Alice did too?

"Danger magnet." I pointed to myself. "This isn't your fault. It was only a matter of time before someone in this building decided to come after me. I really anticipated someone attempting to make me a snack rather than… anything else."

"What he was going to do isn't your fault." Edward ran his fingers through my hair. My breathing was a bit shallow; I fought back a fresh urge to cry. "It's alright love. I won't let anything happen to you." I took a few deep breaths to calm myself, the last one caught in my throat and I turned away from Carlisle back into Edward. Alice and Carlisle took the hint and left the room. I cried myself back to sleep in Edward's arms.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews.**

There was light peeking through the thick brocade curtains when I woke up. A set of cold fingers played absent-mindedly in my hair. I was still safe. There was no cause for alarm. Edward was still holding me. I didn't want to move but I was sure that my breathing had changed betraying my conscious state. The fingers switched to a stroking motion and I knew that my assertion was correct.

"Good afternoon." He whispered. I gave up my silent position on his chest and stretched. I actually felt much better. After sitting up and doing a thorough damage assessment I turned to him.

"What day is it?" My mind was still a bit groggy from an extended sleep.

"You slept through our wedding day." He smiled.

"I what? Oh goodness! I'm so sorry!" I scrambled up loosing my balance just a bit only to be caught by a set of cool supportive arms.

"It's not your fault." He sighed into my hair.

"It's not yours either." I turned and gave him a gentle kiss. He broke from me before there was any heat behind it.

"Are you alright?" He held my face gently with his fingers.

"I feel…"

"Don't say it, not fine."

"I feel better?" I asked with a small smile. I wasn't a stranger to being in life threatening situations. It would take more than Felix, I mentally winced at his name, to keep me from Edward.

"I'll take better." He was completely on his feet while I sat back down on the edge of the bed. "You should eat, it's been days and you hardly ate anything before I left." He was already calling for a meal. I couldn't understand what he ordered but it sounded beautiful. I couldn't help but smile at him as a small ray of sunlight glinted off of his skin through the curtains. He was magnificent.

I went into the bathroom to find a mirror. There was a bruise on my left temple that was starting to yellow and a small streak of yellow under my left eye. My stomach seemed to be just fine as did my legs. I had definitely had worse. I opened a small closet off of the bathroom and was confronted with a few plastic garment bags with Italian script across the outside. What had Alice bought?

With a deep breath I pulled down the zipper on the first. I relaxed a bit as it seemed to be an innocuous looking black cap sleeved dress with a delicate floral print. It was a classic piece that buttoned up the front, it could totally be worse. There were some undergarments on the shelf, not quite what I would have purchased for myself but the sizes were right.

I took a shower to wash the past couple of days off of me. The water was nice and hot, I scrubbed my skin probably a little more than was strictly necessary, and I washed my hair twice, shuddering. I felt okay, I really did. I probably wouldn't have another minute alone as a human after this but in this case that suited me just fine.

I dressed and then went looking for shoes. What I had been spared in the clothing department I lost on shoes, everything had a three-inch heel and looked like some sort of medieval torture device. I gave up and came out barefoot. Would it have killed Alice to pick up some sneakers or in the very least a pair of flats?

Edward's eyes were trained on me as soon as I opened the door. His expression changed very quickly. I had missed something. An old panic lurked in the back of my mind as I thought I recognized that pained expression.

"Bella?" He was walking toward me when I realized where my hand was and that I had stopped breathing. I forced some air into my lungs and dropped my hand from my chest.

"You're not going anywhere." It was a command, my eyes locked on his.

"Why would you?" His voice trailed off as he made his way toward me.

"The look on your face. It was exactly the same as…" deep breath, "after my birthday." I forced my hand to stay away from my chest as anxiety threatened to crush it. His arms were back around me before I could take another breath. My chest felt like it had twenty pounds sitting on top of it.

"I'm not going anywhere." He confirmed and pulled me onto his lap in an armchair near the door. My breathing and heart rate normalized as I nestled into his shoulder. Breathing in his honey-lilac scent. Just the smell of him was enough to calm my nerves. He compared me to heroin but he was a drug to me too. I was hopelessly addicted to Edward Cullen. I supposed that this was a good thing, as we still had to make it through a wedding.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews.**

We weren't able to snuggle in the chair for long before food appeared. I smiled, he had ordered mushroom ravioli, and two cokes. Edward set me up at the small table in the sitting room, a small crooked smile touching his lips. My heart fluttered.

"So, our first date?" I almost laughed.

"I thought it somewhat appropriate given the situation. What's the good in a life threatening situation if there's no mushroom ravioli?" He was trying very hard to keep this light for me. No doubt he was still worried about the possibility of me going into shock. I smiled and gingerly took a bite. In truth, I stifled a moan. These were so much better than the ravioli at Bella Italia.

"Good?" His eyebrows raised, he had heard the stifled moan. Well, of course he had heard it, he was a vampire after all!

"Sorry." I blushed uncontrollably.

"Oh no, I like that sound." His topaz eyes were mischievous, teasing.

"Oh, you do, do you?" I propped my legs on the chair next to me. My dress slid up a bit more than I would have been comfortable with in any other company. I suddenly found myself wondering about things Felix had said in particular about Edward.

"Are you okay?" His tone took on a sudden note of worry.

"I was just wondering," I put down my fork and he eyed it. "I was wondering about all of your rules for us." He was dumbfounded. "Are they all really to protect me from you being a vampire? Or are they to protect me from some of your more… _human _urges." I moved my feet into my chair and wrapped an arm around my knees.

"Partially, yes." His face took on slightly pained expression like he feared ridicule. I took a sip from a bottle of coke. It had been too long since I had eaten. I felt rather disinterested in it except for the fact that that first bite had been so good.

"Partially?" I asked. He indicated my plate and I smiled. We had played this game before. "Fine, I'll eat but you're going to talk." I couldn't help but smile at him as he awkwardly shifted his weight and moved to sit down in the chair I had previously rested my feet in. I propped my feet in his lap.

"Alright, in addition to the whole 'super strength' and the need to control it around you, I adhere to some values that are considered old fashioned these days." He admitted as I took another bite and swallowed.

"Like…" I practically hummed bringing the next bite to my mouth; I hesitated, waiting for him to speak.

"Like the fact that I believe that sexual intimacy is something sacred that should only be shared between a husband and wife." I nearly choked on that bite. I had expected it but I still nearly choked. He looked a bit put out so I quickly took a drink to clear my mouth.

"I'm sorry, I just never expected a vampire to have such high moral standards." I smiled, "So, is it all about protecting my virtue? Because if it is I'll tell you that I really don't care whether or not we're married." He scooped up a bite on the fork and fed it to me.

"It matters to me. When all is said and done I want to make sure that I've done at least one thing by the book. I want everything to be right where you're concerned." He smiled.

"I might not like that, but as you're pretty much a sure thing at this point anyway and I've already agreed to this wedding, I'll take it." He was feeding me another bite. I momentarily considered the fact that it was a good thing that I was going to be a vampire soon. If Edward continued to insist on feeding me so much I was going to balloon out. "But I'm full," I said at the next bite. He looked at me like I must be lying. "No, really, no more food." I shook my head. I really was full; the half plate of ravioli I had already eaten wasn't sitting too well.

"You should eat more." He pleaded but my stomach was too unsettled and it had been too long since my last real meal to eat anymore.

"I'll have a snack later." This seemed to placate him for the time being.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews.**

Edward was rubbing my feet when Alice danced in several minutes later. I was pondering the fact that he really did seem to know how to do everything. The tightness in my stomach relaxed as he worked on my feet. He must have studied reflexology at some point in his century of free time. I picked at a few more bites of ravioli, which made him happy. I was distracted from enjoying being pampered by the enormous garment bag Alice was carrying effortlessly into the room. She chucked a small box at Edward with her free hand. He deftly caught it.

They were doing it again. She looked at him meaningfully and he nodded, followed by bowing his head gratefully. This was followed by another look from her and a heavy sigh from him. Then she shot him another glance and he stopped rubbing my feet. I huffed. This was the one pampering thing that I truly enjoyed and it was about to end in a dress fitting. I feared the dress almost as much as I feared the actual wedding. Heaven only knew what monstrosity of tulle and silk lay within that garment bag. The box had to contain my ring. I was in the very least interested in that. But it seemed that the ring would have to wait because Alice's silent conversation with Edward was getting more and more heated.

"I am going to see if I can spring you for a real date later." He kissed the bottom of my foot sending a thrill up my spine, my head reflexively leaned back a bit exposing my throat. I took my feet back ad stood with him. Our lips met. His gently parted mine and he sweetly sent shivers through me as we kissed. He started to pull away and I groaned. "Later, I promise." He whispered, and he snatched the ring box before I could. I folded my arms and stared at him in mock outrage. "Don't run this for me, a man only gets to do this once." He paused, "well, I only plan on doing this once – not now, later." I had been reaching for it again and I held out my hand. "Maybe tonight, if you're good." He gave me a soft kiss on the cheek and was gone.

"Okay Alice what is this meringue monstrosity that you plan on forcing me into?" I turned on her.

"Talk all you want but you're going to love this." She smiled and dragged me over to the garment bag that was now hanging on a freestanding garment hook, the kind used for steam cleaning. "Now it's going to need to be fitted so you may have to wait another two days, your … accident put us off schedule." Alice stood just to the side and unzipped and removed the garment bag in one swift motion. I gasped! It was absolutely gorgeous. The dress was like something out of a period film. The style could be dated to the early 1900s to be more specific. It was beautiful, not too frilly or fluffy but truly elegant. I was speechless.

"Is that good or bad?" Alice was appraising my reaction. I had one hand lightly pressed to my mouth while the other touched a delicate piece of lace. Tears were welling up in my eyes.

"Oh Alice!" I finally spoke with tears overflowing my eyes, spilling across my lashes. "I love it!" Alice did a little dance in place.

"Are you ready to try it on?" She smiled. Alice helped me into the dress, which as it turned out was difficult to get on. The fit was almost perfect. There were only a couple of tiny modifications that Alice felt were imperative. I would have worn it exactly as it was.

"Alice, I know that you didn't just buy this." I decided to force her into this conversation. "How long have you been planning?"

"Well, work like this takes time and no sister of mine was going to be walking down the aisle with a bargain basement knockoff dress off the rack!" She evaded the question.

"When did you order it?" I tried again.

"Do you really have to know?" She mumbled through a mouth full of pins.

"Yes Alice, I do really want to know how long this has been in the works." I knew that I was safe so long as I was wearing the designer dress. Alice would never risk the dress.

"Since your first visit to the house. I would have actually started the day of the van accident when I first saw you and Edward together in my mind but I didn't know what size until you came to visit. I guessed on your measurements but it seems to have worked out well." My eyes were brimming with tears again. "And now we are finished pinning! We need to get you out of this and get it back into the garment bag so I can get it to the tailor today, and it will be finished ahead of schedule!" She smiled knowingly.

I needed more help getting out than I had getting in because the dress was now fitted perfectly to my body and had pins in a couple of crucial places. I put the black dress back on and Alice stared at my bare feet making a gentle "tsk" sound. She knew that I hadn't even tried on the strappy black 3-inch heels that she'd intended to go with the dress.

" I didn't argue about the heels for the wedding." I defended my choice to remain barefoot. The shoes for the wedding were very high very thin heels which I could argue didn't go with the dress.

"You will need to wear shoes when you go out this evening." She prodded.

"Fine, I'll go try them on." I gave in without putting up a fight. I needed her help to figure out the straps which greatly amused Alice. I had to admit that they did look nice on but I feared the fatigue that was going to be inevitable while wearing these shoes.

"Alice, you did get a dress for yourself too, right? You did happen to see yourself as my maid of honor?" I caught her just before she called one of the other Cullens, the rest of whom had just arrived, to come baby-sit so that she could take the dress before Edward got back.

"Oh! Thank you!" She practically tackled me and accidentally forced me onto the sofa.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. I'm just tweaking with the details because it kept me up at night. Thanks for the reviews.**

****5/20/2009 – I may not update for a couple of days I'm having minor outpatient surgery tomorrow so I'm posting everything I currently have written.****

The day went by very slowly without Edward. Esme, Carlisle, Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie kept me company. Alice was off taking care of any wedding items that couldn't be handled over the phone. Carlisle had me studying vampire lore with Jasper at the moment and preparing for the changes to be expected as a newborn. It was overwhelming to say the least. I had been expecting being a vampire to be difficult but all of this information was beginning to crowd most other thoughts out of my head. I had to stop at least for a while. I propped my elbows on the table and put my head in my hands. Jasper stopped talking. He sensed my fatigue.

"You've been through too much. I can't ask you to study any more today." Jasper used his gift to soothe my raw nerves. "Do you want to take a nap?"

"No thank you Jasper. I've slept for too long already. I need a break though." My head was swimming.

"I see no need for you to tire yourself out." Carlisle's hand was on my shoulder. "I know that you want to be prepared but you're also still recovering. Maybe you should lie down for an hour or two."

"I promise we'll wake you as soon as Edward is back." Jasper patted my hand.

"Alright." I agreed. It was very hard to argue with Jasper when he was using his gift to calm me down.

Esme and Rosalie had been working on the wedding in the background just in case I wanted any input. Alice had left a list of items for them to deal with. I hadn't stepped in on any of the decisions and had no intention of doing so. Jasper guided me to he bedroom and placed his hand on my shoulder. I remembered having fought him on this once last year. Today it was welcome.

We were running flat out through a thick forest. I was keeping pace with Edward as he moved at a blinding speed. It was exhilarating. I glided, my feet moved without thinking, and I wasn't tripping. My movements were smooth, graceful, and completely unlike me. We stopped. He wrapped one arm around my waist.

"There's nothing to fear." He whispered. "This is all very instinctual. You need to reach out with your senses. What do you hear?"

"Deer?" I guessed.

"Yes, we're hunting deer." He smiled at me. I suddenly smelled and heard something else. The smell was overwhelming. I automatically bolted. Edward's hands were on me before I'd made it a foot. He pulled me to the ground and I started to fight with him. My teeth were barred.

I woke up screaming. I was thrashing in the bed. Within seconds I felt a set of cool hands on me. Calm washed through my body. I stopped fighting and the hands came off of me.

"Bella?" It was Jasper.

"I'm okay, it was just a nightmare." I shook it off and got out of bed. "What time is it?"

"It's about six thirty." He sighed, "You've only been out for about forty-five minutes and Edward's not back yet. Do you want me to put you back to sleep?"

"No, I don't want to sleep." I shook my head again; chills ran up and down my spine.

"You're safe, Felix has been sent out of the city for the rest of the week. No one is going to bother you." Jasper tried to find what I needed to hear and missed the mark. At the mention of Felix's name another type of panic shot through me. I quickly pushed that out of my mind. "I'm wrong, you weren't having a nightmare about the attack were you?"

"No, I wasn't." I sighed letting Jasper's talent work instead of fighting it. He looked at me appraisingly. Calm washed over me. Jasper smiled speculatively.

"Okay," he stood up from the side of the bed, "do you want me to stay? I can sit in the corner quietly and help you if you need me."

"No, you can go be with everyone else, I just need to work things out on my own." I smiled. Jasper left the room but he didn't go far. I could still feel an unnatural calm flowing through me. I smiled; Jasper was a good brother. There was a low rumble of rapid conversation in the sitting room that sounded like insects buzzing. It was too quiet and fast for me to make anything out. It was likely about me anyway. The Cullens had been silent while Jasper and I talked, vampires didn't give much privacy.

All of this newborn stuff about strength and thirst was just freaking me out a bit. The past week had been completely surreal and insane. I really needed some normalcy. I laughed at that thought, where would I find normalcy here? What had Edward been doing all afternoon?

Jasper's head popped back in the room.

"I'm fine." I smiled.

"You're not planning on doing anything we're going to need to stop you from doing, are you?" Jasper asked with a troubled look. The last time he had probably felt me get emotional like this was at the hotel in Pheonix. I smiled weakly.

"No, I promise that I'm not up to anything Jasper. I'm just longing for a bit of normalcy, and wondering where Edward is." I nearly fell into the chair.

"He'll be back soon. He was going to try and get permission to take you out for a little while this evening. He's probably just making plans." A fresh wash of calm passed over me. I took a deep breath in and out. Jasper ducked back out of the room.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. This chapters a bit longer but I've already split it in half so... happy reading  
**

I stood at the window for a while. It looked out on a little courtyard with a garden. Vampires came and went across it, most of them cloaked in gray or black. It was actually quite pretty watching little glistening diamonds shrouded in black move through the garden on their way here or there. After a while I noticed one of them looking up at me. I couldn't tell much other than the fact that his or her cape was dark gray and not black. I still felt uncomfortable and walked away.

"Does anyone know why Demetri is staring up here?" Emmett grunted from the sitting room.

"I was watching the courtyard." I said quietly but he still heard the response. I idly wondered how much conversation among the Cullens I missed due to being human. It seemed to be no problem for all of them to hear the smallest peep from the next room. "He must have seen me and stopped to look." I came just to the doorway and leaned on it.

"He's probably still trying to figure out how to track you." Emmett flexed his fingers menacingly.

"Feeling better." Jasper more stated than asked.

"Yeah, a bit better." I smiled. I surreptitiously checked the clock. It would be evening soon. Movement suddenly caught my eye as the door opened. I couldn't help but smile. I noticed that Jasper looked from me to Edward and smiled knowingly too. I felt a little silly about the way Edward could make me feel by just walking into the room. I blushed. Edward was at my side, taking my hand and pulling me away from the doorway in no time. He must have greeted everyone else but I was too immersed in my own feelings to hear it.

"I have a surprise for you." He grinned. "You're getting out for a few hours on good behavior."

"Really?" I hugged him, breathing him in just a bit.

"We can't go far, but I found a place I think you'll like." He turned to Carlisle. "I can steal my bride for a few hours can't I? She's been a good student today." He teased.

"Have fun but make sure you stick to Aro's restrictions, you and Bella are both still in kind of dangerous territory here." Carlisle warned.

"Come on." Edward led me as I nearly skipped down the hallway. It was nice to be out of my suite, I hadn't left since our audience with the Volturi and as nice as my suite was it was getting a bit claustrophobic. By the time we made it outside at my human speed through the contorted hallways that were all identical here in the residence side of the castle the sun was almost down. We came out through a tunnel on the outside of the city, hand in hand.

"Are you ready for a run?" Edward pulled me up on his back in one swift motion like it hadn't been moths since we'd been outside together. This time was different. I had changed; I was braver. I wrapped myself around him and held on tight. The wind was marvelously refreshing. I could watch as the scenery sped by and appreciate it. I felt his joy and relaxation in running. We stopped just inside a small forest and he let me down. I was impressed that this time I wasn't feeling sick, it was the first time after a run that I didn't need a second to calm my heart or steady myself. I just climbed down. Edward was ready to steady me and seemed surprised that I didn't seem to need it. I smiled at him as I wrapped my arms around him and gave him a quick kiss.

"It's not far now." He murmured in my ear and led me slowly and gently through the forest. The ground crunched beneath my feet, I did need his assistance often, as I was unsteady in my shoes. He walked slowly and patiently by my side, catching me every time my ankles started to give way. We laughed quietly. It was just us in the quiet evening air. After a few minutes of walking I could see a clearing and some lights. I picked up my pace. When I made it through the trees I felt my heart swell, my eyes pricked with tears. It was a little grassy clearing, not quite as large as our meadow but it was the closest he had probably been able to find. He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my shoulder before resting his chin on it. A picnic blanket was laid out with a basket containing my dinner. Small lanterns were set up all around the clearing giving it a romantic glow. I had a momentary flash of fear as I identified a small wooden dance floor and a small set of speakers near the blanket. He didn't really intend to make me dance, did he? My heart stopped for a second, Edward tensed and then laughed after following my gaze.

"Don't worry, it's just us." He smiled, "I thought it'd be nice to practice just a bit before the reception."

"Do we have to dance at the reception?" I sighed.

"It is kind of expected for the bride and groom to have the first dance." He chuckled softly and led me into the clearing. "I have something for you." He held up the box. "Do you want to see it?"

"I suppose, if you're ready." I smiled suddenly feeling a few butterflies kick up in my stomach. He pulled me over to the dance floor and motioned for me to stay. After clicking a couple of buttons over at the small speakers he came back to me just as my lullaby started to play. I hesitated as he knelt and started to take my hand in his. His eyes plead with me to go along.

"Bella, I need to ask you something." He was suddenly very serious and I had great difficulty keeping a straight face; he eyed me again. "I need to know." He almost whispered. "If you don't want to be my wife you can still be a part of my family, your choices aren't marriage or the Volturi. Alice, Carlisle, Esme, Emmett, Jasper, they all love you. I need to know before we do this that you really want me. I know that I've given you cause for doubting our relationship this year and my timing in asking you to marry me under these circumstances is less than ideal. I know that you've had the opportunity to explore another relationship and I won't fault you if your desires have changed and are different from mine. I need you to be sure before we go any further. Are you positive that I'm who you really want?" His eyes were the color of pale butterscotch as they met mine. He looked up, dazzling me through those lashes. I could only nod. "If you will have me I want you to be my partner, my equal. I want you to know that you have never been a pet to me. I need you to know and understand that that assumption couldn't be farther from the truth. You are the only woman that I ever have or ever will want to be with; I have always wanted you. I am heartbroken at the sorrow that I've caused you this year and I promise to never hurt you again. I will always love you and I will always want you. Isabella Marie Swan, will you consent to be my wife forever?" His voice had grown stronger. My heart felt just like it had running with him, it was flying.

"Yes." My voice was quiet and tears spilled over my lashes. I had barely been able to respond. He smiled and removed the ring from its box. It was gold with diamonds set into the shape of an oval.

"I hoped you'd say that." He slipped it onto my finger, "It was my mothers, so don't worry, I didn't spend a ton of money on you." He laughed as I pulled him up. My lips found his and I kissed him. I pulled him as tightly into myself as he would allow, which was quite a bit more than usual, I was molding my body into his. The hand that wasn't clutching him close was exploring his face, his chest, his back. My heart pounded and a heat seemed to radiate out of me. I was gasping for breath; my whole body was trembling. He broke his lips from mine but didn't pull away. Instead he kissed behind my ear and softly down my neck, a soft moan escaped from my lips. I could feel his mouth suddenly pull into a smile. "I really do enjoy that." His voice was a gentle but still very primal purr. "Will you do something for me?"

"Anything." I murmured, barely coherent while he kissed my neck.

"Please dance with me." He pulled back a bit to look into my eyes. I realized too late that I hadn't qualified that because in that exact moment I would have given him whatever he wanted, no matter how ludicrous or potentially embarrassing his desires were.

"Alright," I sighed. Dancing. I couldn't even argue with myself to deny him this.

"Just humor me this once." He wasn't satisfied with my tone so he used his eyes to dazzle me into submission. "Dancing at a wedding is unavoidable and I think that you'll be a little more comfortable if we just run over a couple of basics."

"Okay, okay, no need to turn up the charm any further." I inhaled deeply, "I make no promises about being good at this though."

"Fortunately, you just have to follow, it's the mans job to lead." The music had already changed. "We're going to start with a simple box step." He separated us just a bit more and placed my left hand on his shoulder. He took my right hand in his left and grinned at me like I had just given him the best present ever. "Just go where I lead. A little key is that in a lot of dances the woman starts with her right foot, do you know why?" He smiled.

"No…" My eyebrows pressed together.

"I was once told, by a very smart man, that it's because the woman is always right." His crooked smile put me at ease and in spite of the fact that we were on a dance floor I laughed. "So, there are three beats. Step back on your right on one. One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three." He led me flawlessly while I concentrated on the steps. I started to feel confident and looked up into his eyes instead of at the floor when I stepped wrong nearly falling over.

"Sorry," I blushed.

"Relax, it's just you and me. Let me lead you and don't think about it. Look at me, not your feet. I want to see your face." He purred again. "One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three." We started over. He started to lead me into some slightly more complex moves like turning. "Very nice, you're definitely getting the hang of this. You can be graceful when you're not worrying." He complimented me.

"I think all of the grace is coming from you. I'm just along for the ride." I sighed a little. Hopefully I wouldn't have to dance with anyone else. I had no idea who might be on the guest list. I really hadn't bothered to ask. "Do you know what exactly the plan is for the wedding?"

"Alice is taking care of just about everything. But what exactly are you worried about?" He gently corrected my posture.

"I was just regretting that Charlie and Renee won't be able to come." I frowned.

"That is actually being seen to. I've already spoken to them and they're on the way." I stopped dancing in shock and Edward stopped with me. "Charlie didn't take it so well but I think that he'll be over it by the time he gets here. Alice and Carlisle helped smooth things over with him. Renee is excited, especially that we're getting married in Italy. She's thrilled about that and using it as an excuse to take a second honeymoon."

"When did you do all of this?" My mouth was hanging open.

"You were asleep for two days, that was plenty of time to arrange things and get Charlie to agree. Renee was rather helpful in that regard. I can't wait to meet her in person." He brushed the hair back off my face with his long cool fingers. "I'm sorry, there's a lot that I haven't had a chance to tell you. Do you want to sit down and eat while I tell you what we've been able to resolve?"


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer.**

"I take it you were busy while I was out?" I let him guide me to the blanket. I was in shock that he had been able to not only convince Charlie and Renee to come to Italy for the wedding but it sounded like they approved. Music was still playing over the speakers.

"Quite busy actually." He indicated for me to sit on the blanket. I sat carefully on the thick canvas quilt, grass crunching under my shoes. The act of sitting on the ground was a bit challenging in my dress and heels. I barely managed to lower myself down without accidentally exposing myself. Edward opened up the basket to unpack my dinner, kindly not watching my battle to become seated.

"So, what else have you been up to, other than charming my parents into submission?" I was thoroughly impressed and it was apparent in my tone. I took the rather fancy looking bottle of sparkling water that he proffered me, followed by a plate of picnic food. It seemed to be mainly salad and cheese, some fruit, a cold panini, nothing terribly extravagant but all sure to be good.

"Well… you'll be happy to hear that you can finish high school from here. Esmee found a study abroad program for you. You've got a bit of catching up to do but I can tutor you." He hesitated, "I hope that's alright. I mean, we are going to be stuck here for a while and I figured that you'd want to finish school even if you won't be able to walk at graduation."

"It sounds like I'm fairly well taken care of." I was feeling a bit out of control of my life at that exact moment. That was understandable given the circumstances. I was eighteen, engaged to a vampire, and trapped in Italy until I became a vampire myself and gained enough self control to not kill an entire village in a night, or I could become dinner for Felix. The insanity of it all just hit me that moment and a wave of panic swept over me. My breathing was out of control; my hands were shaking. Edward was holding me in an instant smoothing my hair, kissing my forehead. He and his family had been doing the best they could to offer some semblance of ordinary life but it was all just too extraordinary and alien and strange. I set down my food.

"Bella, what's wrong?" He soothed. He seemed to be assessing my ability to run, did he really think that at this point I would suddenly start running from him? "What can I do?"

"I'm sorry… I just… I need a minute to process everything." My breathing was still labored, my head spun. "Everything just kind of hit me at once."

"You don't have to do this. We don't have to get married, not now. We can wait." He was still struggling to find what was bothering me and was actually fairly far from the mark, as usual. The poor man really was lost without his ability to read minds.

"It's not that, it's just everything." I shook my head. "I mean last week I thought that I'd never see you again and now suddenly I've flown to Italy to rescue you only to get myself into trouble by speaking up. Now, I can't go home, I can't finish high school with everyone else – not that I think I really care about that. But we're also getting married in less than two days AND I'm going to have to become a vampire and cut all ties with my family for their safety. Not to mention the fact that I've encountered two of the scariest vampires on the planet." I took a deep ragged breath. "I just need a minute to process all of this."

Edward was staring at his hands deep in thought. Then he ran his fingers through his hair and sighed heavily. He was blaming himself again and I knew it. I felt guilty because this wasn't really his fault.

"We could run." He barely breathed the thought into my ear.

"What do you mean we could run?" I whispered back.

"Quiet," he shushed. "Demetri, the tracker, I don't think that he can track you. He doesn't use sight, sound, or smell. Instead he finds people by what their mind sounds like and uses that to locate them. He can't sense you though; I've seen that in his thoughts."

"No, it's too risky. Besides, he can track_ you_, can't he?" My eyes were wide with fear.

"I can take care of myself. I'll hide you and when he comes for me I'll handle him. You don't have to do this. I can find a way out for you - "

"But Edward, I don't want to live in hiding either. I don't want to risk loosing you. I'm just overwhelmed at the moment." I interrupted him, placing my hand over his smooth lips. "I need a minute and then I'll be okay."

"What are you really thinking?" He ran his fingers through my hair again.

"I'm being honest with you. This is all a lot to take in." I leaned into him and took a deep breath letting his scent and his sheer presence calm me. I interlaced my left hand with his right, my ring prominently on top. "This," I indicated our hands, "is the only thing I know and feel sure about right now. Anything else that comes along I can deal with as long as I have you."

"You never cease to amaze me." He brushed my cheek with his left hand.

"The feeling is mutual." I murmured, leaning in closer to him. I pouted a bit as he leaned back.

"I think we came a bit too close to breaking the rules earlier." He smiled apologetically while offering his excuse.

"We're getting married in two days, can't we push the envelope just a little?" I attempted to dazzle him, seriously doubting that it would work. I advanced on him further.

"There's no need to rush things. We have forever." He stopped me. This time he put his cool fingers on my lips. I shivered involuntarily. "I don't want to risk hurting you and I'm afraid that my self control might waiver."

"You won't hurt me." I reluctantly moved back a hair away from his fingers so that I could speak.

"I wouldn't intentionally hurt you." He corrected. "I know that it seems like I'm just holding out on you or being old fashioned but there is a very real risk here Bella. You give me too much credit. There is physical danger in us being together." Edwards expression was now pained.

"Okay," I let the subject drop again. As illogical as it seems this still felt like rejection.

"You don't believe me do you?" He studied my face. To answer truthfully I would have to say no, so I weakly shook my head. I had never had any doubts that our relationship had definite physical limits until a couple of days ago. I intentionally didn't think about the incident but from it I had learned that intimacy between a vampire and a human didn't always result in death.

"Let's change the subject." I looked back down at our hands still entwined. "So, Charlie, Renee, and Phil will be here. Who else are we planning on having at the wedding?"

"Well, there's my family of course, and then the Volturi and their wives because Aro is insisting on treating Carlisle as family and footing the bill for the ceremony. The vampires from the Denali coven are coming in as well, and we've invited the human staff here so that it's not just your family and a bunch of vampires. We kind of thought that they might get suspicious if no one else eats the food." He hesitated for a moment. "The full guard will be there as well, with the possible exception of Felix due to his inappropriate actions toward you. I believe that Aro has intentionally sent him and Jane on a particularly difficult mission to keep them away." I knew that he was withholding some information.

"That sounds big." I was beginning to feel nervous.

"It's an Italian wedding." He forced a smile.

"So, my education is handled, the wedding has been planned, do we have to stay in Italy until I've been changed?" I asked.

"Caius is going to want proof that we've kept our word. I'm fairly certain that they all intend for the change to occur as soon as we're away. Why? Do you want to try to put it off for a little while?" He used a finger to tilt my face up to his. He seemed a bit happy about my uncertainty.

"I'm just a little scared is all." I admitted.

"What are you afraid of?" He stroked my cheek again.

"I'm afraid of being a newborn vampire, the mood swings, the bloodlust. I'm really scared that I'm not going to want us the way I do now for a while." I could feel the same sadness I felt earlier. I didn't know how to explain to him that I wanted him romantically and that I was afraid of loosing that part of myself. It really did seem like a waste to get married only to not be able to consummate it without 3 days of burning beforehand.

"Is that what all of this talk about 'pushing the envelope' is this evening?" His eyes searched mine. I blushed, embarrassed by my desires.

"Well, yeah," I looked down again even though his finger as still holding my chin up. "I've been studying all of this information about newborns today and it's just overwhelming. I'm a bit scared of being a newborn, of loosing myself for a while, of the possibility of not wanting you."

"You'll still be in there Bella. You will still be you. There's nothing to worry about in that respect." He kissed my cheek, sending a tingle down my spine. "Alice sees us together so I now that you won't lose those desires entirely." He looked into my eyes again intently, he could see something else there. "That's not all that's bothering you. Jazz mentioned that you had a nightmare, not really mentioned but he intentionally thought about it. He said that it wasn't about Felix but that it was intense, you were screaming?" His tone made that a question even though it wasn't.

"I was a newborn; we were hunting and I attacked you." I sighed.

"Well, that's ludicrous there would be no reason for you to attack me while hunting, no blood here." He indicated his silent heart. I watched my fingers trace little patterns on the canvas blanket. "You won't do it."

"I was enraged with you; I've never been so angry. I turned to stalk something that smelled good. You tackled me and I went for your throat." Just the thought was painful to me.

"Don't worry, I'm durable." He joked. "I know that you're concerned but if you don't want to live on the run changing you is our only option. We will take care if you. I won't let you hurt anyone, I promise you that." The music had been going softly in the background through our conversation but now it changed. The beat picked up to a fun pace and Edward smiled devilishly. I cocked my head to the side trying to understand the change in his countenance.

"Is that swing?" I narrowed my eyes smiling again.

"I had intended to teach you more than just the waltz. Your promise to dance with me is still in force. I'm not letting you off with just a simple box step waltz. Besides, it's Alice's favorite." He effortlessly pulled me off the ground one handed and in one fluid movement led me into a spin then some sort of a dip. By then we were on the dance floor. The dance moved fast, he gently pushed and pulled me though the motions and for the most part my body seemed to obey his without hesitation. We stopped a few times so that he could explain a stunt, like flipping me over his back. We danced until the night was dark and the lanterns started to burn out. I was breathless, blissful, and bushed by the time he carried me back into my room. He laid me on the bed and removed my shoes, gently rubbing my feet. Alice helped me dress for bed and Edward returned to hum my lullaby as I drifted off to sleep.

**A/N More to come soon.... some of you may not forgive me for what I may do with this story.**

**Is anyone reading past chapter 5? I notice that's where the reviews stop. Am I slipping?**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer.**

**Be prepared, some of you may not like this.**

"Bella?" It was Carlisle's turn to lecture me on vampire lore. I had stopped paying attention at least ten minutes ago. There was a point when one could be too prepared. I was sore and exhausted from dancing and my education in all things vampire was making me nervous. I honestly was finished with it. I sighed.

"You're not absorbing any of this, are you?" Carlisle asked. He was slightly disappointed that his lecture no longer held my interest but he cared enough to understand where I was coming from. It was just too much information at once. I shook my head and gave a weak smile.

"I think need a nap." I yawned and stretched. My sore muscles protested the movement; they were secretly planning a revolt. Edward was instantly behind me, rubbing my shoulders. "What time do Renee and Charlie get in?" I turned my head to him and planted a quick kiss on the hand nearest to my lips. He sighed.

"They won't be here until evening, love." He leaned down allowing me to caress the side of is face. "How about that nap?" He grinned that crooked grin of his and I beamed back at him uncontrollably. I just couldn't help it; it was an automatic nervous system response. His smile made me giddy. It made my heart beat with reckless abandon.

"Hey, she does actually need rest." Jasper mumbled from across the room, there was something to his tone and a glint in his eye.

"Yeah, something tells me that 'nap' wasn't meant as a euphemism for make out." Emmett chuckled softly. I shot him a meaningful glance. "Oh come on little sister, I see the way you're looking at him. You don't fool us. We're vampires and thus we're kind of observant."

"Okay, fine… I could probably use a real nap." I acquiesced. Edward had kept me out rather late and I did wake up before dawn. I started to consider sleep. I was still having nightmares about being a newborn, only now they were set to music played by the Brian Setzer Orchestra. Because swing music makes attempting to rip your soul mates neck to shreds over prey you were chasing so much better. Sleep was most definitely out of the question. I had more fun plans.

I allowed him to lead me back to my room and slipped off today's version of medieval torture, also known as shoes bought by Alice, these were cobalt blue to match the soft jersey wrap dress I was wearing. He leaned me back on the bed and pulled the silky sheet and a velvet blanket up around me.

I seized my opportunity while he wasn't paying attention and pressed my lips to his. He was sweet like honey and lilacs. My arms wrapped around him of their own accord. It seems that I had been successful in catching him off guard. He had a sudden need to be closer to me and I was out of the covers without our lips parting, his cool body pressed hard into mine. I gasped for breath and he seized the opportunity to press the kiss deeper, his hands were on my torso inadvertently between the two layers of dress. He was clearly over the line as his hands inched dangerously closer to soft, warm, bare, electrically charged skin. My entire body blushed, a wave of heat moved through my skin his cool body was relief. I stifled a moan; there were people in the next room with super hearing after all. He emitted a low humming sound that conveyed yearning, I shifted my weight and he allowed me to roll us over. My legs straddled his torso, also new and dangerous territory. It was thrilling. He tilted my head back gently and kissed my neck. I was hyperventilating. The kissing slowed, he rolled me to my side. My hands were still gently running up and down his muscles. He broke contact. I groaned.

"You have no self control Bella." He sighed heavily. We were greeted by soft chuckling from the sitting room. Edward chucked my shoe at the door and the laughter grew louder. I hooked my foot around his leg in a futile attempt to pull him back in. He wouldn't budge.

"I only started that, most of it was you." I murmured defending my honor and pulling myself closer. "Besides, you have enough self control for both of us."

"I really don't." he resisted my efforts to close the remaining quarter inch of space between us. His eyes were on the ornately tiled ceiling. I turned my head to study it in the diffuse light that seeped in from the window with him. It was a pressed tin ceiling with an intricate floral pattern, quite beautiful, like everything here, like Edward. I sighed. "You have no instinct for self preservation." He laughed weakly.

"No, I just don't believe that you'll hurt me. I think that you are overreacting as usual." I huffed. Secretly I resented his remarks. I did have self-control and an instinct for self-preservation. "Besides I'm just overflowing with this need for you, I feel like it's going to swallow me whole or burn me up." He sighed in response. Was he just afraid, or was there something else? Did he really not want me in that way? It certainly seemed like he did but how could he just shut it off like that? I could still feel a slow burn through my body pulling me toward him like a magnet. He, on the other hand was lying cold next to me. A tear spilled over my lashes. I didn't bother to wipe it. No, why would marriage be so important to him otherwise. I shoved my insecurities aside. I shivered a bit and he wrapped me back up in the overly luxurious bedding and curled himself around me through the covers. I was sleeping before he made it a few bars into the lullaby.

It sounded like I was underwater.

Everything that came to me was muted.

I came out of a plume of black smoke. My wedding dress was smudged with its greasy residue. The high neckline had been torn in my effort to get more oxygen into my straining lungs. I looked up to see a brilliantly blue sky tainted by black streaks of polluted smoke. Panic struck in my heart and I tried to run flat out. Disorientation clouded my mind but this was important, I had to run. Must. Run. Faster. My legs were burning with exertion, the heat from the black pavement seared my feet though my dainty shoes. I cursed them. The heels slowed my pace. But, if I removed my shoes my feet would burn.

Another explosion crushed my body to the ground; the pavement seared my skin and further stained my ruined dress. Flames blasted from the mangled object I was running toward. A cry broke in my throat. I was too late. They were gone. I beat my fist into the pavement and sobbed. My hair fell in a disheveled curtain around the edges of my frayed neckline. Edward formed from a plume of smoke to my right in a black tuxedo. He lifted me off the ground and cradled my sobbing form in his arms. I had to fight to breathe. Each breath was a battle choking on smoke and grief. There were tiny fragments of gravel embedded in my fists. He crushed me to his chest.

A feral snarl rang through the air. I lifted my head to see a form, catlike and graceful with a shock of flame red hair leap from the top of the twisted wreckage. The rest of the Cullen clan appeared out of thin air, literally they shimmered into being around us dressed in formal attire. Alice, Esme and Rosalie wore shining immaculate pink silk dresses; flowers softly accented their hair. The men were all in black tuxedos with black bow ties and boutonnieres. Edward placed me on my feet and crouched protectively in front of me. They made a semi circle between danger and me. I tried to push my way to the front but I might as well have been trying to push on a wall. This was wasteful; she wanted me and only me no one else had to die today.

A howl came from under the wreckage and the hunk of twisted metal flew backward with another crash and explosion. I was the only one who flinched at the scratching shriek of metal on pavement. A great russet wolf bowed awaiting a chance to strike at the flame haired form, they circled. I renewed my efforts to claw my way into the impending fray.

Two dark robed figures slid sinuously along the pavement one tiny, the other large and intimidating. I froze, my hands still clenched around Edwards jacket. Everything happened at once. They approached our circle menacingly, Alice crumpled to the ground, writhing. Jasper crouched over her barring his teeth, prepared to defend his mate. Carlisle yelled. Emmett shoved at Edward pointing roughly away. Edward made a snap decision and whipped me off of the ground. He ran flat out. I was screaming, reaching for the only family I had left.

The scene shifted; we were alone. He brushed the hair back from my neck and asked me something. I nodded and he hesitantly, sadly leaned in. His lips brushed my neck before a searing pain enveloped me. I panted and arched my back up off of the chaise lounge that he had laid me on.

Natural sound levels rushed back in on me. A panicked velvety voice was speaking over a strained discussion. A bright light blinded my eyes. I noticed that my back was arched and corrected it; there was no pain to be arching away from. I let out a deep breath and came to my senses. Edward was rather worriedly attempting to wake me. Alice stood in the window next to the newly opened curtains. I took a few deep breaths, my heart rate slowed to normal, and Edwards shape relaxed next to me. I sensed Jasper in the doorway. I brought my eyes up to him as he sighed a heavy sigh of relief. The room was still tense. My body was slow to respond as I came to a sitting position. I looked down suddenly self-conscious that my wrap dress had come halfway undone. I undid the bow at the back and rewrapped it; my hands shook as I tried to retie the bow. A set of gentle, cool hands took the ties and pulled them tightly forming a careful bow. I had to concentrate and force myself to keep breathing. Edward threw his leg around me and pulled me close to his chest from behind. I was crushed by overwhelming grief.

The phone rang.

Esme had answered in the other room. I heard her gasp and change the channel on the television. I was on my feet pushing past Jasper who attempted to catch me before I could get into the room. He had the benefit of having heard Esme's conversation in full, as did Edward who was hot on my heels. I glimpsed the television and collapsed to my knees. News footage of a burning plane flashed on the television with a ticker running across the bottom of the screen. There was more flame and smoke than jet left of the wreckage. It was a crumpled lump of twisted metal, and exactly like my dream it exploded.

"I didn't know to look." Alice whispered, "I was watching the wedding."

"They're gone." My voice was filled with quiet desperation. I struck the floor with my fist and turned to Edward who had dropped to the ground with me. My eyes felt glazed over. I couldn't see the room in front of me properly. "Victoria is coming, and she's going to try to break me every way she can before she kills me, and she's going to make Edward watch. She's already started." I caught Alice freeze from the corner of my eye. Her eyes took on an opaque film and she startled back to life gasping.

"How did you…?" Alice sat down with her hand over her mouth.

"My dream, there's more…" I sighed completely devastated by the new turn of events. "Has anyone called LaPush since I left Forks?"

"Why?" Jasper stared down at me blinking.

"Because Jacob Black has gone looking for trouble, that's why." I sighed and leaned into Edward who was as near to catatonic as a vampire can get. He was going to have to snap out of this because I was about to turn the world on its end, especially for him and Alice. More so for Alice but he may have something to say about my new plans. This was one nightmare that I was _not_ willing to ride out as planned.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer.**

"And you thought now would be a good time?" Edward had chosen the inopportune moment to wake from his catatonic state. He had been listening to the somewhat heated conversation between Alice and myself while he gave his mind time to catch up. He was going to have to let that superior vampire mind of his run at breakneck speed for the next few hours because things were about to change. I didn't acknowledge that he had spoken; Alice had to be dealt with first.

Alice was still at the window with her petite arms folded, one painted fingernail tapping on a marble arm. Her black and white designer ensemble was in contrast to the warm gold of the curtains just as her dark and menacing expression was in contrast to the sunlight spilling in from the window behind her and the gorgeous sparkles shimmering off of her skin in the mid day light. I had known as soon as it came to me that she would be pissed. Hell hath no fury like Alice when you want to mess up her plans. Of course being Alice the minute she could see my decision to bump the wedding up to today without a reception or flowers or anything else that would require waiting until tomorrow she had started to fight. I had to back track and explain to all of the non-psychic vampires in the room my cunning plan of getting the wedding over with today since it was highly likely that tomorrow would cause problems due to the whole Victoria – torture – death issue which was sure to take at least a day to catch up with us.

"This is important to me." I pleaded with her still in my spot on the floor. "If the dress is ready, I say we call Aro right now and do this because tomorrow she'll be here to ruin it. It's in the paper and you have to admit that if you're going to torture a woman every way you can before killing her that kidnapping her on her wedding day is a pretty good twist."

"That actually makes..." Emmett began before meeting with Alice's hard stare.

"Love, I don't think that the day your parents die in a plane crash is really the same day that we want to get married." Edward was starting to get up to speed. He reached out and touched the small of my back.

"Alice, what do you see tomorrow?" I smiled knowing that I had to be right on something.

"Carnage." she sighed.

"And the carnage is a new development, yes?" I smiled morbidly. Alice gave a solemn little nod. I really had to get everyone on my side while they were still numb with shock. I had had just a few seconds longer than everyone else to deal with the realization of my parents death and I was going to take advantage of this before everyone else went all overprotective-controlling-vampire on me. I had to get this out BEFORE it sunk in, before they got up to speed because Emmett who is the one who stopped Edward from running off with me in the Jeep last year wasn't likely to follow one of my plans again after the way the last one worked out and if my safety was in question Edward and Alice, followed quite possibly by every other vampire in the room, were going to go ape and make a crazy rash decision involving pissing off the Volturi. I had to get Alice on my side first because she knew the future; everyone trusted her visions and this prophetic dream was a new development. I was going to trust in myself this time.

"I want to avoid that if at all possible." I sighed, "So, logically the best thing to do is to get the wedding over with tonight, in the square in plain sight where she won't risk exposure for fear of the Volturi. Take me to Aro and I'll deal with rearranging things where he's concerned because he can't read my mind." There was no movement in the room other than myself. I found it a bit amusing that I seemed to be sitting in a peaceful room with a bunch of marble statues desperately trying to find a way out of my imminent demise. I suppressed the urge to panic because that would bring Jasper back to life before I was finished convincing Alice. "Alice, it has to happen now. I'm ready and if we wait it may be put off indefinitely, the Volturi may decide after Victoria shows up that I'm just too much trouble, gifted or not and take me to _sustain_ them. Or, they might not let me leave at all." _Especially if Aro sees in any of your minds that I just had a prophetic dream that I'm going to HAVE to avoid mentioning out loud any further lest any of you smarty smart vampires happen to put two and two together. Crap! _They were starting to unfreeze. "Alice? Wedding. Tonight. As soon as the dress is finished, and Jasper and Emmett you need to get Edward out of here before we incur any more bad luck since I'm pretty sure that since the bride and groom seeing each other on their wedding day is off limits, then making out earlier was a bad idea." Emmett was still too stunned to chuckle at that. _They moved_, it was working; I kissed Edward on the cheek and smiled.

"But…" He put up a winded protest.

"It's going to be alright darling." I caressed his cheek. "I'll see you in just a few hours, no heroics, no running away, I promise. Today, I am going to be your wife." He still looked like he might ruin my plans. "Edward Anthony Masen Cullen do you want to marry me and spend an eternity in my arms or not?" I managed a sultry whisper in his ear.

"I do…"

"Then go, NOW!" I ordered him out and much to my surprise it worked, he went. Unwillingly, but he went. I waited until he was out of the room heading toward the accommodation that had been made for the rest of the Cullens. "Jasper, keep him calm, keep him occupied and for goodness sakes get him in his tux and down to the Palazzo Dei Priori in time to marry me before all hell breaks loose."

"All hell's going to break loose?" Jasper whispered in my ear.

"I can't tell you how I know for my safety as well as your own, but _you_ have to keep him in line for me. I'm trusting you with the only thing in the world that still matters to me." I whispered back fiercely; he could feel my determination. I had Jasper and to an extent I had Alice, next I needed Carlisle. Hopefully Alice would take over all of the 'future stuff' so that I didn't have to expose myself. Wait. Where was Carlisle? He was surprisingly quiet. Carlisle wasn't there. He had missed my outburst with the dream and he was friends with Aro, he could handle Aro. As soon as the boys were out the door I rounded on Alice, Esme and Rosalie.

"What in the name of all…" Rosalie started.

"Alice, do you trust me?" I met her hard topaz eyes.

"That depends…"

"On what?" I demanded, crossing the room toward her. She gave me a look I hadn't pulled the wool over that set of topaz eyes, she knew that I knew something and she wasn't going to play along easily. "Rosalie, Esme, I need the two of you to leave the room, and do whatever you have to, to not hear what I'm about to say to Alice."

"Why?" Esme was shocked standing in the doorway but I didn't take my eyes off of Alice.

"There are things that have to be hidden from more than just Edward." I growled.

"Not until you make me a promise." Esme's voice was now dark; she actually sounded like a vampire. Alice tore her eyes from mine and gaped. I sighed heavily and turned around.

"Isabella Swan, you promise me that you aren't about to sacrifice yourself." Now, I was gaping at her. She really was a mom she was using the mom tone of voice. That really got my attention. "No, listen to me. He will not continue living without you, the past few months have been so bad that it was unbearable to be around him. You are much more fragile than any of us and I know that for some reason you think that all of this is your fault and that you're not important but you are an important part of this family and we would rather die than loose you again. You are worth so much more than you understand." I heard a loud sucking sound and felt something stir deep in my chest. I let out a breath, my expression softened.

"Esme, I promise you that I am going to do whatever I can to avoid taking any unnecessary risks with any member of your family, including myself. But Alice is best at hiding things from Edward and he isn't going to like what I'm about to do because there is an element of risk involved, and you know Esme, you know how absolutely unreasonably insane he gets when my safety is involved and he will drag Carlisle, and Emmett, and Jasper with him and you know that if the four of them take up a cause that we won't be able to deter them.

"This has to be done very carefully or I will definitely die. You know that he's not going to consider things carefully. You know that he's going to try to grab me and run. The Volturi will be put out if he does that and then we may all die. I have a shadow of a plan but I need Alice to help me work it out.

Esme seemed to consider me for a minute. I had to get her out so that I could talk to Alice privately. I was desperate to get her alone. I appraised Esme, she looked like she believed me, which was good because I was only partially downplaying the risk.

"You've grown up a lot in these past few months." Esme finally spoke.

"I've had to." I breathed. She nodded slowly before heading out of the room.

"If you're lying you won't have to worry about Victoria." Rosalie pointed a finger at me as she stalked after Esme. They shut the door and turned up the TV painfully loud.

"Alice, is having the wedding tonight any safer?" I probed. She looked skeptical but her eyes clouded over anyway.

"We're clear until midnight. She won't be here until then." She hesitated, "You've made some rather, interesting decisions this evening. You also seem to know some things that you shouldn't."

"Please don't make me tell you Alice." My expression was pained. I really didn't want to risk her life as well.

"I'm not Edward, I won't be as easily dissuaded." Her posture was dangerous. "You knew about the plane crash before it happened Bella. You knew about Victoria before I looked for her. You haven't paused for more than a second since you woke up from what seemed to be an absolutely terrifying nightmare that Jasper was so scared he insisted on waking you up from. Your parents _died _Bella and _you _didn't even flinch. So you're _going_ to talk to me and you're _going_ to do it now." There was an almost sinister calm to her biting words as she stared at me with hard eyes. "What is going on with you?" she demanded.

"I'm not one hundred percent positive I can trust it but I dreamed about the crash and a fight with Victoria, Felix, and Jane." I was shaking now somehow admitting what I saw made it more concrete, more real. I wasn't truly afraid until that second alone with Alice. I gasping sob broke from my lips and I found the edge of my bed it bounced slightly as the pillow top conformed to my shape. "Jacob is coming too. I don't know how that turns out, but I know that he's going to fight her."

"Oh Bella" the mattress shifted slightly as Alice sat down and wrapped her arms around me. "We're going to make this work."

"Everyone I love is either dead or in danger." I sobbed finally feeling the break that I knew was coming. My shock was over. Alice was going to have to take over now. "You can't tell anyone about the dream Alice. I'm hoping that they'll forget my slip earlier. All of this information has to come from you." I pulled myself together just a little bit.

"Can I ask? Why not just cancel the wedding? We're in one of the safest places to be in a vampire attack, the Volturi won't tolerate exposure; it would be squashed quickly. Why tonight Bella?" She hugged me tighter.

"Is that what you really see happening?" I asked bringing a hand up to my face to wipe away the tears. Alice was suspiciously silent. "It's not is it? She'll try to use stealth and her new Volturi friends to sneak in and get me if we postpone."

"Yeah." She sounded winded. I snaked an arm around her. "We need to start getting you ready while we talk." There was a slight pause. "The dress is ready." I heard a smile to her voice.

"We need to find Carlisle first so he can go talk to Aro and change our arrangements." I looked at her. "Try not to laugh, I'm going to throw a 'bridezilla' fit for Aro's benefit." Alice smiled a wry little smile.

"Go take a shower and I'll have him here when you finish." She was out the door in a flash. The TV turned down in the sitting room.

"Esme." I called not too loudly because it was unnecessary.

"Is everything okay?" She was kneeling in front of me in vampire speed, her hair still swished disconcertingly behind her.

"I need you to not tell Carlisle about anything other than the crash and me being completely set on getting married immediately until after he sees Aro." It was clear that she didn't understand but she didn't question my request either, for that I was thankful.

"Let's go make me a bride." I smiled almost triumphantly as Esme hurried me off to the bathroom collecting Rosalie on the way.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: The characters and situation in this story do not belong to me, they are the property of Stephanie Meyer. **

*** This is Friday's installment. Please don't get frustrated with me I have to go back in for another procedure on Friday so I'm posting this as late on Thursday night as I can… It may be a couple of days before I have another chapter up. Reviews keep me going. All I can say is thanks to all! ;-) Especially to "ye who shall not be named" who reviewed the last chapter within 5 minutes of it being put up - you rock! ***

That must have been one good hair rising fit that I pitched. I unleashed all of my pent up anger and frustration and grief onto Carlisle with full force. The strikingly gorgeous blonde actually seemed afraid - _of me_. My recollection was more than a bit fuzzy but I was positive that I backed Doctor Carlisle Cullen the nearly four hundred year old vampire patriarch_ into a wall_. That was actually quite flattering. Tears fell; objects flew. I was a force of nature. By the end he had decided that there was no way to dissuade me from the decision to marry his son immediately. He went to discuss this with Aro but he was positive that it could be done.

"That was impressive." Alice brought me a tissue after Carlisle was far enough down the hall. I looked up from where I ended doubled over on the sofa weeping in my slip and crinoline, hot rollers hanging from my hair at odd angles from the shaking and fury that they had had to endure over the past three minutes, eyes and nose red, I took the tissue. Then, I set about trying to calm myself. Working up to complete hysteria hadn't been all that difficult as I had enough reasons to be hysterical. I was still shaking when I walked into the bathroom to wash my face again.

"Oh Alice, I think you have your work cut out for you." I looked in the mirror somewhat horrified at the toll my little dramatic interpretation had taken.

"Don't worry, I've got it!" She passed me some eye drops when she came in. I placed myself on the bench in front of the vanity and prepared for Alice to do her magic. The drops burned but the redness subsided. Alice's hands moved feather light and lightning fast over my skin. "No one will ever know you've cried a day in your life by the time I'm finished with you."

Alice stopped for a half second with a look of shock on her face. Her hands began to fly faster. I tried to keep my face still, even though I was puzzled. A split second before there was a knock on the door she stopped.

"Bella, I need to tell you something before we open that door." Her voice was hushed. "Aro is in the sitting room, and he is very worried about you. As a matter of fact, right now, since during your tirade you mentioned 'being alone with no family' and 'needing to be part of a family'… he's about to offer to adopt you not as a member of the guard but as I guess his daughter. You _cannot_ refuse him this. It doesn't mean that you have to stay here, you won't be expected to drink human blood, but if you deny it the wedding will not happen tonight. Instead, he's going to assume that you're up to something. Take a deep breath." Our eyes were still locked. "Can you be really upset without crying and ruining all of this makeup?"

"I'll try but I make no promises. You know that I didn't mean it right? The having no family thing, because you're already my family." Alice nodded. I started to think about my parents again and stopped just before Alice got to the door. "Alice, whatever you do, do not touch Aro." She nodded and opened the door. Esme stood in the doorway shocked and completely confused. This was certainly an unexpected turn of events; I wondered how it played into my plans for avoiding a painful demise. Certainly killing a member of the royal family was frowned upon. Perhaps that would put the entire guard behind me. I pushed that thought away and started to fill myself with all of the sad but not completely devastating things that I could think of. Esme came in and knelt beside me.

"Bella, Aro would like to speak with you." She and Alice took the rollers out of my hair quickly and deftly. Alice brought me a large silk robe that almost looked like a kimono because of its rich colors and detailing. It was blue, as with most of Alice's purchases for me because her brother liked the way blue complimented my skin. There was an intricate gold and green pattern that swirled throughout the fabric and a thick gold trim around the edges; the whole thing shimmered in the light. I stood and wrapped it around myself. Alice adjusted it to ensure that I was completely covered. Surprisingly, it actually covered the entire crinoline. I caught a glimpse of reflection and gasped. My hand grabbed Alice's shoulder.

"Alice!" My eyes widened with shock. In the mirror I saw a beautiful woman her hair hung in loose ringlets around her face. The woman blushed. Her complexion was flawless, her lips full, and her brown eyes were wide with shock. "You are a miracle worker."

"Thank me later. No time to stare now; we can't keep him waiting." Alice ushered me out of the bathroom. I shoved my awe at Alice's skill aside and filled my countenance with sorrow.

I walked very carefully from the bathroom into my sitting room. Carlisle was immediately at my side, he put an arm around me to steady me. I took a shaky breath and pulled him into a tight hug. I thought of my mother, so full of life, and a couple of dry sobs shook my frame.

"It's alright." He shushed, "You need to pull yourself together for just a while though, you have a visitor." I nodded.

Aro stood when I had entered the room. The two female bodyguards who were also standing flanked him. He was as intimidating as I remembered but also entrancing. I struggled to show only sadness and no fear. He moved with a swift gliding movement toward me as Carlisle moved me to the middle of the room to meet him. My breathing was still uneven and my heart rate erratic. It was rather disconcerting to willing move towards a cold-blooded mass murderer who now wanted me to be his daughter.

"Dearest child," he cooed, "you have endured much in these few days here in our home." I nodded and took another strained breath. I knew that in order to keep up the façade that I needed to speak as little as possible during this exchange. I was a terrible liar. "I feel that we have been terrible hosts with such loss and torment befalling you during you stay. It is my sincerest desire that you will forgive us for the actions of certain members of the guard that may have resulted in any discomfort."

"Aro, you are certainly forgiven. You didn't know that a member of the guard would betray you. I- I'm recovering and please understand that much worse things have happened in my short life. I-I'm k-kind of a danger magnet." I only briefly met his gaze. He looked slightly taken aback and confused.

"Bella, I of all people should have known when he avoided me that morning. Felix's appetites are somewhat unsavory and uncontrolled and I did know that much. But the loss of your family so soon after this pains me child. I have seen your sorrowful life through Carlisle's and Edwards memories and I beg you to consider something for me." He reached for me and I held very still to keep from flinching away from his hand. He stretched out one cold powdery finger and lifted my chin. A single tear was spilling down my cheek. "Dearest child, I would like to offer to take you into my household." Carlisle stiffened next to me. Esme let out a little gasp from across the room. Rose and Alice ducked their heads together.

"I don't understand." I cocked my head to one side.

"I would like to offer you my protection as a daughter child. I would also endeavor to act as your father at your wedding this evening if it would please you. I do truly approve of this match, as you seem to have brought out such wonderful qualities in Edward whom I think of as a nephew. Carlisle and Esme have worried so long about him; it is not good for him to have gone a century without a mate. I know of your disapproval of certain appetites that the family indulges in but please know that you will not be expected to consume human blood after the change no matter how much I lack an understanding of that choice." He appeared sympathetic enough and I had already been told that I must accept this gesture. The thought still turned my stomach. I was about to ally myself with someone whom I considered a ruthless butcher. I was suddenly even more relieved than before that he couldn't read my thoughts.

"Aro, I accept your offer and would be honored" _disgusted,_ "for you to act as my father in this manner." Yes, I was very glad that he couldn't hear my thoughts.

"Excellent." Joy broke across Aro's stone face. It seemed rather out of place, his features appeared as if they were about to crack. I was suddenly very concerned that half of his ace would have to be swept off of the floor. "We must move you to family quarters then. I will send for someone to bring you as soon as your rooms have been prepared, daughter." He took me by the face and I noticed that he stopped breathing as he kissed my cheeks he smelled sweet as I was accustomed to but his scent was a bit thicker like an unsmoked cigar.

"The wedding is set for twilight. I hope that this pleases you. There is not much that can be done by means of preparation for this so I do hope that you will pardon us for not moving the reception from tomorrow. However, a celebration will be held for the townspeople, as it is not everyday that my daughter gets married." He noticed my sudden look of panic. "Oh, come you must allow me to dote on you dearest Bella. This is a big day in your life!" He kissed my cheek once more and then he floated out of the room.

I let go of Carlisle and collapsed on the sofa. A giant sigh left my body. I was crushed by what I had just done. The weight of it was enormous. It was like I had joined the mafia. I lolled my head back and took as many deep breaths as I could manage. The entire room, with the exception of Carlisle, seemed to relax.

Carlisle began pacing. He observed me carefully and then turned his troubled face to Esme who looked a trifle less confused than he did. Suddenly he sat down on the coffee table in front of me.

"Would any of you like to tell me what this is about?" He was frustrated. His eyes turned to Alice after searching for someone willing to make eye contact with him. "How long have you known about this?"

"Not long Carlisle. Things have been changing… rather… rapidly. But I think that Bella may have just saved all of us." Her tone was questioning. She was still unsure of the outcome of today's alliance. She took a deep breath and scanned the future. "I think that it's safe to tell you now. Victoria is on her way here to torture and kill Bella, she's allied herself with Felix and Jane. Although, I don't think that Jane will stay with her after this. I think that she will return to the guard as soon as this news reaches her to spare herself having to fight against Alec who doesn't share her hated for Bella." She paused for a second and looked at me. I was still in shock, shaking on the sofa. "You've done quite well Bella." She chirped in her little pixie voice.

"Edward is not going to like this at all." Carlisle put his head in his hands.

"Edward." I sighed. A streak of fear suddenly shot through me. Edward. I had just completely taken over and potentially changed our life together. "Carlisle, what do I do now?" I barely kept myself from crying.

"Esme and I will go handle Edward. We will inform him and make him see reason. He loves you; this changes nothing in that regard." Carlisle moved next to me and gave me a hug. I glanced at Esme and suddenly noticed that she was already dressed for the wedding. Her hair was curled and pinned intricately up on the crown of her head and she wore a pink satin gown that made her appear as a movie star about to walk the red carpet instead of the mother of the groom at a wedding. I didn't know how that had escaped my notice in the bathroom. She gave me a quick kiss on the forehead before Carlisle ushered her out the door.

"Ooooh!" Alice squeaked, "I didn't think that the flowers would be ready! This is perfect. Rose, would you mind popping down and getting those?"

Rose glided out of the room. I continued to sit exhausted and bewildered by what had just happened. I was now a member of the Volturi, and I wasn't even a vampire. I longed for when my life had been simple, when I just had to worry about whether or not my boyfriend was going to take me out on Saturday or drink my blood. At that, I laughed a morbid little laugh and sat up straight to face the rest of the day.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/n Thanks! Things went better than expected. Short chapter today though. Nothing belongs to me here I'm just playing with the characters a bit for fun. Sorry – no carnage today – I decided to spare Bella just one little moment of unruined human experience. I was tempted though because I **_**hate**_** weddings. **

It was twilight. My hair was intricately pinned so that the curls cascaded down my back. My dress and the bouquet that Alice had handed me just moments ago were perfect. The walk to the Palazzo Dei Priori had been short. Edward was waiting for me. I beamed. I could feel a warm glow radiate from my body. This was really happening; but, I couldn't see him. My view was blocked by guests, mostly in black and grey robes but some of the townspeople had gathered to watch this impromptu wedding. Everyone was standing. Large floral arches marked the aisle, the scent of fresh flowers threatened to pull me under. A string quartet was playing but they hadn't moved officially into the processional music. Alice took a moment and straightened my train out behind me, she checked my hair, and leaned in to whisper into my ear.

"There's one tiny problem Bella."

"Please tell me that after all of this he's here at the end of this aisle because I really can't handle being abandoned again right now." A surge of panic seized me, my knees felt weak. Aro steadied me under my arm.

"No no a _tiny_ problem, we had to change clergymen and this one is a vampire who is several centuries old and he's insisting on conducting the service in Latin." Her face was a bit apprehensive.

"LATIN!" I swore I heard the violinists bow slip ever so slightly out of rhythm. All eyes were also suddenly fixed on me.

"Shhhh!" Alice clapped a tiny hand over my mouth. Aro gave me an inquisitive glance.

"_I don't speak Latin. I don't even know any useful Latin other than what you can find on T-shirts._" My voice came in an incensed whisper. I struggled to hold my composure as my frame started to visibly shake.

"Bella, you say 'Volo'. That is all you need to know dear child." Aro's ancient yet somehow musical voice chimed in my ears.

"Volo?" I took a deep breath and tried to settle my nerves.

"That's exactly right." Alice nodded, her hands on either side of my face. "Now, the music is going to change in just a few beats. Edward is waiting at the end of this aisle for you. Focus on him. Breathe Bella." She commanded. I didn't realize that I had stopped. I breathed deeply. "Walk slowly."

_'Volo. Volo. Volo. Volo. Volo. Volo. Volo.' _I chanted in my head.

At the change in music Alice floated lightly and slowly down the aisle. Her pink dress had the tiniest hint of a train at the back of it, the back plunged to a V. Her hair was flat on her head in finger waves. She looked like a model. I was pulled from my observation by Aro gently guiding me down the aisle.

I didn't look at anyone until I got to the second row of guests and Edward came into view. He was beaming triumphantly. My lips curled upward in an uncontrollably huge smile. I felt like my whole being lit up. He was breathtaking in his tuxedo. I locked my eyes on his, they were topaz today. My breath caught and my heart rate accelerated. Only Aro's grip on my arm kept me from bolting the last few feet toward him. When we finally reached Edward, after what felt like a century, Aro gave my hand to him. I noted that Edward managed to avoid touching Aro's hand in the process. He had caught on to my plan for stealth. He didn't seem angry. Perhaps he understood my actions this afternoon.

I gave my bouquet to Alice. He held my hands in his and we spent the entire time staring into each other's eyes. I had to be prompted to say "Volo" which resulted in me blushing, and a booming laugh from Emmett. Edward chuckled just a little under his breath. We exchanged rings. It wasn't long before it was over. We kissed, perhaps for a little too long, my knees buckled. We were presented as husband and wife and Edward lifted me, and carried me back up the aisle to many cheers from his brothers. He carried me all the way back to _our_ new apartment in the upper residence of the castle.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/n Short again today. I was going to get further but I've got a ton of stuff to do for church tomorrow. (I'm writing this on Saturday in case it wasn't obvious.) Don't hate me but my posts may be a little less frequent or shorter like they were before now that I'm not stuck on the couch but the story will continue.**

"Alright Mrs. Cullen, you have some explaining to do." Edwards voice wasn't threatening but he made it quite clear that he wasn't happy either. In all honesty it actually would have been more sexy than scary any other day. As soon as we made it into the apartment he kicked the door closed, practically in the faces of the two guards who had been assigned to watch over me. He placed my feet on the ground but didn't let go of me. I wasn't exactly sure what I had expected but to start the honeymoon with him grilling me had not been part of my plan. I pouted and reluctantly moved away, further into the room.

"Would you like to help me change first?" I smiled impishly attempting to distract him. He himself had said that vampires were easily distracted. He stood staring at me like he didn't know what to feel. His face oscillated between completely infuriated and amused.

"Bella, this is not a game, this is your life I'm concerned about here!" Well, he hadn't settled on amused, that was for sure. I took off my shoes leaning halfway on the couch to keep my balance.

"Don't I get to worry about yours?" I couldn't properly see my feet under the dress but that didn't keep me from trying. I feared for my ability to hold my own in an argument with Edward. However, he was making this a bit easier by not resorting to more enjoyable tactics. My mind flashed to the night of the baseball game just last year when he had been _very_ convincing next to the jeep. That would definitely be more fun but I knew I would loose that way. I shifted my weight back onto my feet an ran my hand along the light blue sofa, it had a faint shimmering pattern to it that I pretended to study while I waited for his response.

"Listen, I know that you're scared and that you're worried but please don't shut me out. I need to know what's going on." He was directly behind me now, hands on the tops of my arms. I felt a surge of electricity move from my arms out into my body. Sometimes, it was really hard to believe that Edward Cullen couldn't read my mind.

"Alright, but I really do need to change. There's not a whole lot of time." I inclined my head slightly in his direction. My body was starting to relax into his presence and the self composure that I'd been holding onto for the afternoon and evening was beginning to falter.

He took my hand and followed me out of the sitting room and down the hallway passing several other opulently furnished rooms along the way. We eventually made it to our bedroom, which was quite grand in and of itself. I knew that even though he had never laid eyes on our new living quarters before that he wasn't looking at the apartment. His eyes were trained on me. I was frowning and I knew it. I had an overwhelming sense of dread about this conversation as well as tomorrows events, possibly starting at midnight.

"I promise that I'm not trying to distract you but I really can't get out of this thing on my own." I indicated the dress. Edward smiled faintly and took my face in his hands to study it. I smiled back at him.

"It's going to be alright, I can protect you." He released my face and started working on the row of tiny buttons down my back, it was maddening. I knew that this wasn't going anywhere because we still needed to talk but for goodness sakes the man was undressing me and it was very hard not to be aware of that fact. It didn't help that he almost reflexively kissed my bare shoulder blade. With that, there was a knock far down the hall. "The buttons are undone, can you make your way out from here?"

I nodded and he grinned crookedly as he closed the bedroom door. I wriggled my way out of the dress, carted it over to it's rack, and carefully hung it up. If all went perfectly there might still be a reception the next day. Provided that I hadn't been hauled off to be tortured by then. I sighed and got to removing the rest of the wedding apparel. I left all of the puffy whiteness in a chair next to the rack and went to my closet to find something comfortable to put on. After much searching through garment bags I found something that might pass, a pair of yoga pants and a fitted T-shirt, I idily wondered how that had made it into the closet. I shrugged into them regretting that we apparently had company so soon after the wedding but I guessed that everyone would be assuming that nothing would take place tonight. I found a pair of fancy looking slippers on a shelf and tucked my feet into them. I had stalled long enough. I assumed that I had a frustrated bunch of Cullens out in the sitting room to deal with, and I walked down the hall to discover that I was indeed right.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: I hope y'all enjoy this; Edward is about to get things wrong in classic Edward style. The characters still belong to SM. Happy Monday!**

I could hear the quiet argument before I even got close. Edward was absolutely livid, he was speaking in a low fast whisper that I couldn't make out; he was the closest to the hallway with his back to me. Alice looked like she was carefully concentrating when she came into view. I didn't know if anyone had noticed my approach, it certainly didn't seem like it. When Edward had apparently blown himself out Jasper started in his hushed tone. I caught my name more than a few times. Edward was tense, rigid. I waited for Jasper to finish. The posture of everyone else in the room, except for Alice, changed. Esme and Carlisle wore horrified looks; she buried her head in his shoulder. Emmett was seated on the couch with his head in his hands fingers locked in his hair. Rosalie sat next to him dumbfounded. But Alice was still deeply concentrating which seemed to annoy both Edward and Jasper.

"Edward" I called him softly. "Edward, if you're mad at someone it needs to be me." His body heaved in a sigh. "Can you talk to me alone before you take absolutely everything out on the rest of our family? I think that you'll find that my explanation will go a long way toward easing your fears." He turned to face me, but didn't speak. "Will you meet me in the conference room?" He still hadn't officially responded but he attempted not to huff as he walked passed me. As soon as he was out I turned to Alice.

"What does our time table look like?"

"Her plans changed when Jane heard the news from Alec." She was still concentrating. "The current plan is to wait until you leave Volterra. She's looking for more allies though, it's still very dangerous."

"Thank you!" I started to make my way down the hall to reassure Edward.

"Thanks for not wrinkling the dress! You'll need it for the reception!" She shouted at my back and I waved over my shoulder at her hurrying down the hall.

The conference room was the third door on the left. I felt kind of odd having a conference room but in this particular case it was convenient because I had a sound proof place to take Edward. I had a feeling that I had worn down his patience today and that he was going to think the absolute worst. I entered the room and closed the door with a sharp click behind me. He was seated with his back to me, arms folded in one of the thickly padded swivel chairs at the large ovular table that dominated the room. His stare was focused blankly on a white view screen straight in front of him mounted on the opposite wall. I moved the chair next to him aside, with some difficulty, and pulled myself up on the table in front of him so that he'd be forced to look at me. My legs were angled to one side. He shifted his gaze away from me.

"I know that you're angry." I started with a level calm voice attempting not to incite any more anger than was obviously boiling under the surface. He didn't respond. "Okay," I took a deep breath, "I'm sorry that I felt it was necessary to keep you in the dark today."

Nothing.

"Look at me."

Still Nothing.

"You look at me now Edward Cullen or I am walking out of this room." His stone cold eyes finally shifted up to meet mine. "I am the only one who can reliably keep anything from you and today you would have behaved rashly and endangered us further because I was and still am in danger. I'm sorry I kept you out of the loop but it was necessary."

"What exactly are you planning? Are you intentionally putting yourself in harms way again? Are you planning on being selfless and just going out to meet her?" His voice was strained; he pinched his nose between his thumb and his forefinger.

"No, do you think Alice-."

"Are you sure?" He cut me off. This time it was an accusation.

"Esme already made me promise that." I met his eyes.

"You are a terrible liar." He leaned in. His face and voice bordered on viciousness.

"I'm actually not lying at the moment, but thanks for that. I really appreciate the fact that my husband thinks I'm lying to him on our wedding day. Marriage is going to be great! So glad we did it! This is exactly what I thought would happen!" I made a move to leave and he caught me before I'd made it off the table. He slid me back in front of him. His eyes were apologetic. There was something bigger wrong here. I let go of my anger and intently focused my eyes on him, squinting just a bit.

"Just tell me that you're not suicidal and we can talk reasonably." He begged.

"I – um – what?" I was taken aback. Something suddenly clicked, when people decided to commit suicide they got calm, they tied up loose ends. They were often calm and happy when they settled on their plans. He had seriously misread my intentions today. I sucked in a breath. I had insisted on marrying him immediately. I had asked if anyone had called LaPush. Those could have been loose ends.

"Are you planning on doing something to get yourself killed because you are upset about your parents?" He had articulated the question as clearly and slowly as he could.

"No. No!" I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding. Was this really what he thought that today was about? "I can't believe you would think that especially after everything we've been through this week."

"What was I supposed to think Bella!?" He yelled. I couldn't speak; I was too shocked for words. "Jasper said that you felt grief, a little bit of panic, but overall your emotional state before you kicked me out this afternoon was calm! You told him to look after me. You exact words were to 'keep me calm an occupied'. Calm and occupied! Can you understand why I might think this when you kicked both of us out and kept Alice from us so that we had no way of knowing whether or not you'd made a decision and what that might be!?"

My heart broke seeing the pain in his expression even though he was yelling at me. I had no idea what the afternoon had been like for him. He had honestly spent the afternoon thinking that I was planning on committing suicide. I could only imagine what it had been like for him worrying over me all afternoon. He knew about the cliff diving and the motorcycle; He thought that I had a death wish with those alone. That was before my parents… How could I have done this to him? I really was terrible; what had gotten into me? The room was blurry as two streams of heat moved down my face. The tears were flowing now. I could feel the world tremble.

I was barely aware of two cold arms pulling me off of the table. I found myself in Edwards lap. He gently cradled me into him. He stroked my hair. His scent and his touch worked their usual magic. My breathing slowed, the sobs calmed.

"Oh Bella," he whispered.

"No, I've behaved terribly!" I was still crying even though the hysteria had stopped.

"Why wouldn't you just let me help you? You don't have to deal with this alone, we're here for you."

_Oh no, he still thought that this was solely about the plane crash. That I would –_

"Wait, I'm not planning on dying." I placed a hand on either side of his face. "I just feel terrible for what I've put you through. I didn't know that my emotions would lead you to believe that. I can only imagine what you've been through today." I caressed his smooth cheek.

"So, Jasper and I were wrong?" He was still puzzled.

"Your assumption is so far from what was actually going on today that I don't even know how to begin to explain my actions."

He relaxed visibly and let out an almost imperceptible little sobbing gasp. He suddenly threw his head back in relief. Although, he looked like he was still on the verge of a breakdown.

"I will never leave you. I didn't fly all the way here and risk my life to save yours just to throw it away." I resituated with my knees on his thighs to be closer to his face. "I'm so sorry Edward. I wouldn't have done this if it hadn't been necessary. I promise I will explain everything."

"So, I don't have to worry about your desire to live?"

"Not in that sense. I am still planning on becoming a vampire so that hasn't changed." The fact that he could smile about this spoke volumes about how far we'd come on that issue.

"You scared me today." He sighed, "So, what is this game that you've been playing?" His frustration was evident but so was his relief.

"I've been attempting to manipulate our situation to make it safer." I bit my lip, he was still sure to be unhappy about this.

"The games weren't necessary today. You could have told me." He softened his tone and pulled me to stand beside him.

"Today's 'game' changed everything, and you over react in a very unsafe way when my safety might be at stake. I'm not sure how firm the alliance it formed is but it was necessary to keep some rogue members of the Volturi guard from handing me over to Victoria themselves."

"Speaking of which, I can hardly say that I approve of our current family situation." He raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't have much choice. The wedding had to happen today so some deception of both Carlisle and Aro was necessary." I couldn't figure out the expression on his face. "I feel really terrible about yelling at Carlisle. I _really _didn't see Aro's reaction coming though. It shocked Alice too."

"He really does have a genuine interest in you beyond your shield. I have seen that much. He finds you entertaining, particularly due to that lack of self preservation skills that we keep running into." He paused. "It may be just because he can't hear your thoughts as well, or maybe it's just because you seem to draw out strong reactions from vampires. We either want to kill you or feel protective of you. Humans tend to have strong emotions about you too."

"That's just silly." I scoffed at him.

"You don't believe me." He sounded almost offended. "I can hear them. You inspire very strong reactions in just about everyone you come in contact with. I don't think that you can help it."

"We need to talk about what's going on." I changed the subject. "We've talked about this year but we haven't covered everything that's going to be important that's happened. Did Alice tell you that Victoria has been after me for a few weeks already?" He nodded. I sat back down in his lap feeling weak and fragile. "The werewolves have been protecting me." There was an angry rumble deep within his chest. "Please stop, I would already be dead without them." I begged. "It appears that Victoria is getting desperate. I'm certain that she had something to do with the plane crash, and Jacob Black is on his way here now." An ache was now building in my chest. I just wanted to stop and cry but I didn't have the luxury right now.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't there to protect you." He breathed into my hair. I curled in closer to him.

"Felix is with her." I shuddered. Edward pulled me in even closer. "Jane was with them earlier today but Alice saw her leave after she got word that I'd been 'adopted'."

"You're shaking."

It was now my turn not to respond.

"There's no reason to be afraid. There are only two of them, even without the Volturi involved we could have handled them." He sighed.

"Victoria has yet to go straight for me through the wolves. She avoids confrontation at all cost, and she seems to be quite evasive. They're probably not planning on fighting you. The plan is to kidnap me, remember?" The thought put a rather large knot in my stomach.

"They'll have to get you alone first and that isn't going to happen." He paused. "I have something relevant to tell you that you might find upsetting." He tried to assess what my reaction would be. "I attempted to track Victoria when I left you. I'm obviously not very good at it because when I was trying to pick up her trail in Brazil, she was obviously hunting you in Forks. I tracked her as far as Texas though."

"You were tracking her?" I cocked my head to one side.

"That was my distraction. I thought that there was a slight possibility that she'd come back and I still wanted to do something to protect you. I'm obviously not very good at it as I was on entirely the wrong continent but I did try."

"Thank you for trying." I kissed his cheek. "It's the thought that counts."

He hugged me again.

"Wait!" I jumped up. "Were you and Jasper sharing your suicide theory with the others?"

"Yeah, that's what we were doing when you came down the hall." My realization had just dawned on him; the whole family with the exception of Alice now thought that I was suicidal. He seemed to unconsciously agree with me that this had to be corrected immediately.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/n Once again the characters belong to SM not me. Oh well! I'm just going to continue to borrow them for a while! Thanks for reading; it makes me happy!**

The conversation wasn't long. Edward allowed me to race down the hallway ahead of him, only having to catch me once in the several yards from the conference room to the sitting room. One slippered foot caught the back of the other slipper sending my toward the floor. I idly wondered if I was going to be clumsy as a vampire.

Our family looked so sad. They were all very still, unwilling to bother with the human pretense while deep in thought, except for Jasper, our resident psychologist. He was pacing a little channel in the floor. Alice had kept quiet, half doubting whether or not my plan had been to kill myself, no doubt. She eyed me like a woman who had been used for just a moment before her vision came to her, that Jasper and Edward mad been mistaken. Her countenance changed and she shot a frustrated glance at them before breaking into a smile.

"Jasper, you and Edward were wrong!" I barely got the sentence out. He looked up at me stunned before dropping into a chair seemingly emotionally exhausted. "I'm so sorry," I was kneeling in front of him, "I didn't realize that it looked that way at the time."

"Oh Bella!" Esme gasped pulling her head off of Carlisle's shoulder.

"There was something else going on that only Alice and I knew about and I didn't think beyond the need to protect everyone." I addressed the room. "I'm so sorry for how this appeared, but I promise that I'm not planning on doing anything to put myself in more danger. You all have to know that, please trust me. I couldn't put Edward through that again."

"You had me scared little sis." Emmett's voice shocked me as he pulled his head up to look into my eyes. His voice was emotional in a way that I had never heard from him. He was usually good-natured and teasing but today he had actually been worried.

"I. Told. You. So." Rosalie made each word it's own sentence as she berated the room. "I know that I don't generally like Bella as a rule, but for goodness sakes, it's obvious that she wasn't suicidal this afternoon. You all have over active imaginations."

"Thanks Rose?" They were possibly the kindest words I'd heard from her.

We were cut off by a knock at the door. I was needed in Aro's study. Apparently our lack of an ability to have intimate relations was commonly known around Volterra as everyone seemed to think that tonight, our wedding night, was a good time to have a little chat. It rankled something fierce. I was unhappy about this. Jasper looked at me, just a bit confused. Apparently my annoyance with company and my clearly lustful desire to be near Edward were now showing up in my emotions. I smiled at him sheepishly and he stifled a laugh. He must have thought about it in order for Edward to react the way he did. His face was priceless as Jasper's thoughts came to him. His eyebrows shot up, eyes wide with shock and he seemed to suddenly need to take a deep breath. Alice looked at me, shocked. I thought that perhaps tonight could be salvaged if I could ever get him alone. I answered the door.

"How much do we trust Aro?" I turned to my family after asking the guard to give me one minute.

"His intentions seem sincere enough." Carlisle stated. "He seems to be honestly concerned for your well being, especially after this afternoon. I think that his interest in you and our prior relationship should ensure your safety in the very least. Caius doesn't like much of anyone but Aro and Marcus still consider me a brother at least in name."

"Aro is more fascinated than concerned actually. But he won't risk your life. He's hoping that we'll continue an alliance and that the wedding formalized it; that was part of the reason why he jumped at an opportunity to tie you to him. Although, Chelsea can't force any real bond with you. She's been trying since we got here to break your bond to Alice and myself or to bond us all to the Volturi. Our family has gotten fairly large and it makes Caius uncomfortable." Edward reassured me.

"Well, I'm glad I can be useful for something other than scaring everyone senseless." I sighed.

"I definitely see you coming back uninjured but other than that I can't see much. Tomorrow is still dangerous after the reception." Alice sighed.

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**A/n Sorry to end here y'all but my DH kidnapped me from the kitchen after my first draft didn't pan out (this is what survived after he released me), and as he's my soul mate you'll pardon me for not protesting too much. He's trying to inspire me to write a much different wedding night scene…. He might be successful. So, you may appreciate his influence later. But if you have complaints about the cliffhanger it's all his fault.**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/n Once again the characters belong to SM not me. Oh well! I'm just going to continue to borrow them for a while! Sorry about the last chapter, hopefully this one is up to par. DH edited it for me to make up for tearing me away from writing yesterday. Bear with me; I just need to get through a little more set up before getting into more fun material.**

I took Edward and Carlisle with me to meet Aro, mostly because Edward insisted that I not go alone. Carlisle came to keep Edward in check. He had been informed of Edward's emotional outbursts and Caius' desire to provoke him as much as possible. He came just in case Caius decided to make an appearance. Aro's door was the next one down but since the apartments were large it took a while to walk there at my pace. I had no desire to speed this up. We were flanked by my two Volturi bodyguards and followed the guard member who had been sent to fetch me. It was quite obvious that Carlisle and Edward were taking a defensive stance between the guards and me.

Aro's apartment made my lavish place look like a closet. The study was huge, a few small seating areas were scattered about. Some rather macabre, vampirically-inspired artwork hung between shelves of books around the room, I made a concerted effort not to look at it, and a large window composed the opposite wall. We entered the study to find all three 'brothers' present. Aro's eyes instantly focused on me. He was at the other end of his study. Edward was holding my hand deep in thought. Caius was preoccupied with a book at the other end of the room. Marcus waved Aro over to him and touched his hand before Aro came to address us.

"There is a very faint bond between you and Aro. Aro is pleased." Edward whispered almost too low for me to hear. "I think that you can trust it but we cannot trust Caius, he's planning something but I can't figure out what that is yet, he's using the book to distract his thoughts. Felix is involved." I shivered involuntarily. Caius was continuing to persist in his dislike of both Edward and myself and if he allied with Victoria I could very well be dead by morning.

"Dearest Bella." Aro came to me first, his black hair flowing slightly behind him. Once again, he held his breath while kissing my cheek. I wondered if this action would continue to feel uncomfortable after I became a vampire. As a human it was quite disconcerting having his mouth on my cheek. I banished all thoughts of venom and teeth in order to stay calm; I wondered exactly how good he was at controlling his bloodlust. Thankfully, the moment was over quickly.

"Brother, I am pleased that you have come with Bella." He embraced Carlisle, without touching skin, and turned to Edward. "And dear Edward." They did not touch at all. Edward was clearly avoiding that. I briefly found his reaction to Edward amusing, it was almost as if we were indeed keeping up this whole father-daughter charade, he was not happy to see Edward. "Come and sit for a moment." Aro took my hand and guided me to a wingback chair on the edge of the room.

"Thank you." I responded as warmly as I could fake and hoped that it was good enough. He smiled in a manner that I'm sure was supposed to appear reassuring and fatherly. "Is there something we need to talk about?"

"We have discovered that you are in danger child." I let out a sigh and hoped that it sounded like I was upset and not relieved. Edward instantly grabbed my hand and moved as close to me as he could. If they knew about Victoria, then this would all go more smoothly. I looked at Edward to see that he was reacting to Aro's thoughts. His face twisted with horror and rage.

"What is it Aro?" I shook off Edward's expression, narrowing my eyes and searching Aro's face for any clue as to whether this danger involved Victoria.

"You are probably unaware that the death of your parents was not an accident. Someone crashed the plane with them in mind." Aro studied my face. I couldn't help the sudden blush that came over my features. My stomach churned and I placed my hand over it and took a deep breath. I had suspected but hearing someone say it out loud was painful.

"It was a plane crash, how? Why would someone…?" I knew why. I didn't need to be told. The plane crash was part of Victoria's plan to break me. Caius was now presumably on her side. The thought of them having anything contact with my parents was devastating. Having it confirmed was worse. I hoped that they had not suffered. The calm façade once again failed me. I felt the breath moving in and out of my lungs frantically. I had no control over it. My chest ached. I was surprised that I had enough tears left to cry but the slid easily from my eyes and dropped into my hand. Edward knelt in front of me in a flash, wrapping his cool arms around my body.

"It's alright," he murmured. He reached up and futilely wiped my eyes, the tears kept flowing. My eyes were raw from so much crying today and yet, I hadn't fully dealt with the crushing emotions that I had been keeping at bay. This was only the third time that I had allowed myself to cry today. If I had been at leisure to do so I would have cried all-day and right through until morning. I would cry myself into dehydration given the opportunity.

"No… it's … not … alright … they died." Gasps broke my voice into an unintelligible staccato. A low wail emitted from my chest, my breathing was too labored and heavy to make the words come out clearly, "because of me." My heart lurched a bit more, "There's no other reason for them to die."

"This is not your fault." Edward cradled my face in his hands. "None of this is your fault Bella."

I continued to sob and he pulled me into his shoulder. His hands couldn't slide cleanly through my hair because I had never taken it down but he rubbed them over my hair where he could. I held onto him. He was my life raft in the ocean of pain attempting to envelop me. I could hear without really hearing the discussion in the room, but my comprehension slipped in and out between sobs and gasping for air.

"It was only a matter of time before the shock wore off." Carlisle was speaking in a hushed tone.

Aro muttered a low, fast response.

"It takes time, humans often go into what's known as shock after a traumatic event… … they break down." I lost much of Carlisle's clinical explanation. "You may speak with me about the rest of your news. She needs Edward right now; he can help her through this."

"Your son's self control and restraint are truly an amazing thing to behold!" Edward's uncanny ability to resist the call of my blood was a shock no matter how many times he witnessed it.

"He works very hard to be safe for her, and to keep her safe.

"It's love Aro. Their bond is closer than most mates because of the love that they have for each other. He lives now, because of her." Edward's arms tightened. This was too close to praise.

"Let us get to the matter at hand. We are certain a vampire caused the crash. I believe that she has encountered …

"… our dear Bella before. I have seen her in your mind, Edwards, and now Jane's. … leaving a trail in what we assume was her search for the girl …

"clear up the matter. Due to Felix's interest in the girl she was able to convince him to join her. We are certain …

"… responsible for the plane crash and that they will stop at nothing to hurt Bella whether or not she is changed." At the mention of the crash my body started to quake again. I pulled tighter into my lifeline, Edward.

"Do you intend to help us protect her, Aro?" A rare accusatory tone seeped into Carlisle's voice.

"Felix has many friends among the guard. I have been doing my best to screen their intentions and keep her from harm but my efforts may be in vain. I can send a few loyal members of the guard with you but you will need to transport her from the castle to one of our residences in the North to keep her safe. She cannot remain here." Aro actually sounded sad. "I advise you to wait to proceed with the change until you have her safely away. As you know, moving her during will be nearly impossible and she will still be vulnerable until it is completed…

Carlisle responded softly in what sounded like the affirmative. However, Aro did not feel that this was sufficient.

"There is no advisement, she is my daughter and you will leave with her tomorrow following the reception." Edward stiffened at these words and I pulled back to see his face. It was stone, hard, concentrating. Eventually he blinked at me and kissed my forehead, his scent swirled around my head, making me momentarily dizzy.

"Carlisle," Edward called causing me to momentarily come out of my stupor. "I think I need to get her back and in bed. She's obviously exhausted."

Carlisle nodded in agreement and decided to stay behind to finish the discussion. Edward lifted me and carried me effortlessly down the hall back to our room. There was an instant flurry of movement as soon as he brought me in the door. I was barely conscious of it.

"She's alright. It's been a very long and emotional day and she needs some rest." I was curled into his chest with my eyes closed still sobbing softly. This was not how I had wanted to end the day.


	24. Chapter 24

A/n All Characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. Sorry for the delay! I hope that it's worth it, we had a major storm two days ago that fried my modem and I had to wait for a new one to be delivered. Today's chapter is long, it was 6 pages typed in word as opposed to my usual 3-4. I hope no one minds but it would just break my heart to split this one up. I'm attempting not to plagiarize Stephanie's work but there are a couple of scenes in Eclipse with this discussion and some of the lines and actions may be similar if not identical because I am trying to work with her characters and they would behave this way. I intentionally did not open the book while writing though. Having said that…. Read on and please review.

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A set of large olive skinned hands grabbed my head and shoved it back into the wall with a sickening crack. My arms were bound behind me and I couldn't see anything other than Felix in the black. He no longer wore his Volturi robe but a pair of pants and a bloodied white tank top. A high, wicked laugh rang out on my right. I could feel the panic threaten to take over and I had to get it under control. I was going to die here but I wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of breaking me. I knew that Edward was being held on the other side of the wall. He was being forced to watch my torment. I had given up hope of a rescue.

I had to be strong for Edward.

I pulled in on myself and focused on our last good memory together. I willed my body not to feel the pain as they broke it. Instead, I saw a beautiful pair of golden eyes staring into mine. I felt him kiss me. My body reacted unconsciously to his. I felt his cool touch on bare skin. My back arched. My heart raced. So long as I kept my focus on him, they would be unable to hurt me. I focused on the sensations that his touch, Edward's touch, created. I felt only his love. I didn't scream. I didn't cry. Blackness eventually took my vision. Perhaps their restraint had failed, they had succumbed to the smell of my blood. Maybe I was dead.

I opened my eyes and I was still in darkness. For several moments I thought that it had all been real. But soon I smelled lilacs and honey and felt the satin sheet under my skin. I pulled myself up with a heavy sigh and tried to calm my heart. I could feel it racing within my chest. My hands were trembling as I groped around the bed for Edward. He found me first and sensing my panic he pulled me quickly to him. He ran his fingers through my hair and kissed my shoulder lightly, like a cold butterfly.

"Nightmare?"

I couldn't bring myself to respond other than to pull as closely into him as I could. I would not let him go. His smooth marble skin eased the uncomfortable heat radiating from my own. If I pulled in close enough, perhaps I would no longer be able to quake with fear. It occurred to me that tomorrow might very well be my last day. I might not live to be a vampire and I might die a very real and permanent death at eighteen. I took comfort in the fact that my human family was already gone; so, they would be spared the grief of loosing their daughter. I felt sorry for Jake and all that I had put him and the pack through; even though they seemed to think that Victoria was some kind of game. Edward was my one worry. The others would console each other. They could be whole again, but not Edward. For all of his marble skin and invincibility he was fragile; I had made him that way. My death would surely kill him too.

There was one thing I needed before I could face death. I needed him. It was a long shot but I had to try to convince him to do this for me. In order to make this work I would have to be bold and use some of his own persuasive techniques against him.

I lifted myself slightly and found his neck. I slowly and gently kissed from its base all the way up to his chin. My lips found his mouth as a dark curtain of hair flowed around us, the smell of strawberries mixed with lilacs and honey. I started gently, urging him to understand my needs. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and up the back of his neck entwining my fingers in his hair. I did not change the kiss but he took the bait. His firm lips softly pushed mine open. My heart skipped a beat in victory. The simple act of kissing him was the most wonderful thing in my world but tonight I needed more. He was my husband and one way or another certain walls would be breaking down this evening.

I did not want to break the rules too quickly. Instead, I allowed the slow burn throughout my body to build like a fire. I moved one arm very slowly, almost imperceptibly from his hair, and ran it slowly down his neck and onto his chest. Once at his chest my hand timidly unbuttoned his top button. I waited for a reaction to this but the kiss continued, the next button came undone much more easily. I distracted him by moving my hand back up to his neck before returning to unbutton the rest of his shirt. He swept his lips from mine down to my chin, up the jaw line and kissed behind my ear. I moaned and felt his smile press behind my ear. His cold lips planted there again and begged the same reaction. I took this as a cue to move further and pulled his shirt completely off. His alabaster skin shone white in the dark. I deftly caught one of his hands as it left the shirt and placed it at the hem of mine, a fraction of an inch from my bare, warm skin.

Predictably he pulled away. He had no need for the light but he turned the dimmer switch next to the bed so that a faint, warm glow came from the lighting recessed in the crown molding around the walls. His eyes locked on mine. He was going to need reasons why I was breaking the rules but he stared at me for a long moment considering the situation carefully before speaking.

"What are you doing?" The question was baited. I knew that he would not be taken off guard by my advances. Surely Alice would have warned him of my intentions, or perhaps I was correct about my earlier slip and his expression was in fact due to him seeing through Alice exactly what they were.

"There's something that I need from you." I still had not caught my breath; however, this was compounded by the fact that my attempt at nonverbal seduction had fallen flat and a discussion was now necessary.

"Are you alright? Your heart is racing out of your chest." His eyebrows pulled together.

"I'll survive." I smiled still struggling to gain control of my heart and respiration before he insisted on taking me to Carlisle for a check up, effectively cutting off any road toward my desired outcome.

"What is it that you need?" He lay on his side propping his elbow on the bed and resting his head on his hand. I slowly mirrored him.

"I just want to try…"

"No" He cut me off. His face was soft and sympathetic but his answer was still firm.

"Please Edward, I'm your wife -." I pleaded with him.

"For which I am eternally grateful but because you are my wife and I love you, you will pardon me for not risking your life –." He kept his tone calm and quiet, part of me hated that about him.

"You won't hurt me." I cut him off with a soft plea.

"I might." He reached out with his right hand and stroked my cheek, his skin was cool but I blushed at the touch leaving a burning trail. "I might even kill you."

"I don't think that you will. I think that my safety is so engrained in your every thought that you couldn't hurt me." I turned my head to kiss his hand.

"Later, after the change. We have forever, there's no need to rush into things." His thumb continued to brush my cheek.

"Please." I ducked my head slightly and looked into his eyes through my lashes.

"No" He placed a solitary finger over my mouth. The conversation was effectively ended.

I can't explain the irrational feeling that I had next. I suddenly couldn't look at him anymore without a stabbing pain threatening to overcome me. My heart felt heavy in my chest as I got up and headed for the bathroom. I was ashamed of myself. After entering I turned the lock and sat down on the cold tile floor. I buried my face in my hands and rested them on my knees. I refused to allow myself to cry. This emotion was absolutely ridiculous because I knew that Edward Cullen, my husband, loved me, that he was attracted to me. I knew that he thought I was beautiful and that he had chosen me, in his hundred years I was the only woman he had ever loved.

"Bella," The door rattled.

"I'm fine; I'm just having a human moment." I whispered into my hands knowing full well that raising my voice was unnecessary and he could hear me through the door.

"Please let me in." His voice was soft, gentle, pleading.

"No." I was ashamed of this reaction and the feeling of sadness and rejection. I didn't want him to see it.

"Bella," Sometimes when he said my name it came out with a sense of awe attached to it. His voice conveyed that emotion. "Bella please let me in. I know that you're just sitting there."

"I need to be alone." I breathed in futility feeling my resolve weaken.

"No, if you're hurting I need to be with you. Please open the door Bella. I want to talk to you about this." There was now pain in his voice too. Unconsciously I reached up and unlocked the door. He opened it the smallest amount that he could and slipped into the room gracefully. He knelt before me and pulled my hair back from my face. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes punctuating my embarrassment. I was even more embarrassed to be crying on the bathroom floor in front of the man that I loved who had not meant to offend me; he only had my well being in mind.

"You know I can't give that to you, not now." He sighed and started to extract my face from my hands. I resisted, knowing that he wouldn't risk hurting me by forcing my hands away.

"Please move your hands." His voice was a sad whisper; it touched my ears softly and coaxed away the last of my resolve to keep my face covered. I slowly moved my hands away while surreptitiously wiping the tears off of my face. I locked them together under my knees.

"You're crying." He was still whispering gently. I feared speaking so I nodded my head without raising it. His hands touched my face wiping the remaining tears that I had missed while attempting to covertly hide my shame.

"I love you." A new tear slipped out and redampened my eyelashes. I blinked against it and more seemed to follow.

"I know you do." I forced myself to respond and my voice came out as a tiny wisp.

"Will you look at me?" He grabbed a washcloth and dabbed the newest additions from my face.

"I don't think that I can." I felt so exposed and vulnerable. He slid a hand under my chin and lifted it up, trying to level my face with his own. I closed my eyes and turned my head in a vain attempt to avoid his gaze. This was ridiculous. I had no reason to feel this way but somehow it still hurt. He brushed the hair back from my face again tucking it gently behind my ear. Then he moved slowly to line his face up with my against the cool tile wall.

"Will you tell me what you're thinking at least if you won't look at me?" His sweet breath in my face soothed my nerves.

"I think that I am a fool for feeling this way but I just can't help it." I opened my eyes after I finished to see his reaction. His face was kind and thoughtful. His hand idly brushed my cheek again making it tingle in an unfair way. "Rationally, I know that you're afraid to try and that you love me and you would like to do this too. However, emotionally I just made myself very vulnerable and even though this isn't rejection it still _feels_ that way."

"I'm sorry I hurt you." He kissed the remaining trails of tears from my face. "You don't ever need to feel ashamed in front of me. I am your husband; I should be the person whom you can tell anything without fear, or shame no matter how silly you feel. You are a part of me now."

"Okay." My eyes were cast down again as I responded.

"No, look at me. You have no reason to feel ashamed." His fingers ran themselves through my hair. "Please don't hide what you're feeling from me. Is there a reason why you can't wait four more days?"

I brought in a shaky breath and summoned the courage to tell him exactly why I felt the need to take this risk now. It shouldn't be so hard to be open with the one person whom I trusted completely, implicitly. He loved me enough to overcome his bloodlust, surely I could be honest with him, and especially in light of how not being honest had worked with the wedding; I owed him this.

"There is a very real chance that we won't make it tomorrow." The words rung like a death sentence. "I don't want to die without having at least tried to be with you like a wife should be able to be with her husband. Does that make sense?"

"It makes some sense but I think that you may be exaggerating the immediate threat that Victoria poses." He was so sure that we were going to be safe that it was hard to not believe in him.

"Mistakes and accidents happen, especially to me." I sighed.

"That is true. You really are quite difficult to keep out of harms way." He was biting his lip now, considering something. "Does this really mean that much to you?"

"It does." I breathed and my heart skipped just a little.

"Will you promise me something?" His voice was suddenly stern, his eyes filled with fear. I nodded; I would make any promise he wanted. "You have to tell me if I hurt you or frighten you in any way. Can you promise me that?"

"I promise." My heart seemed to flutter out of my chest.

"I will try for you." He murmured. "We're going to take this very slowly and very carefully, let me lead, and please do not speed things up, alright?" He asked looking deeply into my eyes.

"I can do that. It'll be just like dancing, you lead and I'll try not to trip." I smiled at my attempt at humor.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" He finally smiled at me.

"More than anything I've ever wanted in my life." With that he carried me back to our bed, gently kissing me the whole way.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/n – The characters are once again not mine, they belong to SM. Please enjoy and review.**

I had completely lost track of the days since I left Forks to save Edward from himself. I was living my life on fast forward and it seemed that things were coming to an end. The morning dawned and I awoke still in Edward's arms. We fit together perfectly; there was no need for him to have worried as much as he did with regard for my safety. Our encounter caused no injury and I was blissfully content. It felt odd to be content at that moment given everything that had happened to my family as well as Edward and me. I refused to dwell on the fact that this day was very likely to be my last day. I wanted to spend an eternity with Edward but one day might be all that we had left. Today, the first full day of our married life, would be brilliant.

The weather was cloudy so the reception and celebration were held in the early afternoon, Alice had already planned for that, and we were to leave in the evening. Four identical cars had been procured to play an intricate game with decoys that would hopefully keep Victoria from finding me or in the very least buy us some time. However, as with all plans there is always something that doesn't work to our advantage. Just before the reception, Jane and Alec disappeared. I knew that this game was now hopeless. Had it been any other two vampires who had gone off to join Victoria and Felix, then we may have had a chance. But Alec would be able to incapacitate everyone but me at once. I knew when I received the news from Carlisle that I would face my fears alone.

An image flashed in my head:

_My family, all frozen except for me, surrounded me. I was utterly defenseless and there was no point in running. I didn't move or protest when Victoria took me, and Felix took Edward. Laurent had informed me that this death would be slow and painful. Victoria was going to enjoy my torment and break me more than just physically before granting me my pleas for death._

Suddenly it all made sense. About an hour before Carlisle delivered the news, Alice, Edward, and I were talking and laughing when it all cut off. Alice froze in place and her mouth dropped to the floor, Edward tensed beside me, and Alice ran from the room. I hadn't asked because I didn't want to know at the time. But after Carlisle broke the news to me it was crystal clear. There was no way for me to avoid my would-be captors. Instead of breaking down again, I threw myself into being happy and cherishing every moment of life that I had left.

It was almost full dark when Edward ushered me through a tunnel under the castle followed by three humans dressed in my clothes to disguise their scent. Aro had provided them from the Volturi staff and there was no way to refuse them. I absolutely despised the idea and argued against putting anyone else in danger but I found myself quickly overridden by Alice. She still felt that this was our best chance for saving my life. We were teamed up, one human and three vampires per car. The additional numbers were made up of guard members known to be loyal to Aro. The stone floor of the tunnel echoed under our feet as we made our way to the black armored cars. Edward informed me that he had considered purchasing this exact vehicle for me once, the Mercedes Guardian. They were apparently as indestructible and safe as a car can get, and in addition they were fast. I watched Gianna climb into the first car in line with Esme, Carlisle and Demetri; my car was second. It was decided that the best protection that could be offered would be to have Edward, Alice, and Jasper as my bodyguards for the short trip into the northern section of the country. We chose to use the mansion there because wildlife was more abundant and its position seemed to be the most easily defended.

Alice slid into the drivers seat and attempted to make me feel better with a smile. I knew that it was a pretense but I smiled back and relaxed. Jasper slid into the backseat followed by me with Edward on my other side. I knew that Rosalie and Emmett were in the next car back but I hadn't paid attention beyond that. I had no confidence in this plan actually working. As soon as the doors were closed on the last car we took off. Each car sped toward a different remote location. If we were lucky, they would go for the decoys and not my car. However, the sheer fact that I was involved in this little cat and mouse operation deemed us unlucky. I found the determination and calm that I had used just yesterday to put on a brave face for Edward. It was a moot point with Jasper in the car though. Jasper would sense my emotions and then Edward would hear them. There really were no secrets in the Cullen household and I needed to get reacquainted with that fact.

Soon we were miles away from the city, the faint lights from a village here or there dotted the black landscape. The moon shined silver and blue on the pavement and danced brilliantly over the hood. Edward held my hand drawing small circles into the back of it with his finger; I leaned my head back onto the seat and let out a sigh. Without warning he stopped cold. Alice pulled the car off onto the shoulder suddenly. The three siblings worked so well together as a team that there was hardly ever any verbal communication necessary among them.

"They're coming after our car now." Alice glanced at me through the rear view mirror; her golden eyes filled with concern. She had pulled over rather than risk having Alec knock her out at the wheel and causing an accident. We got out of the vehicle and Edward pulled me onto his back.

"Which way?" Edward glanced at her.

"They're coming from the East which means they followed Rosalie and Emmett. We'll do what we can to hold them off, run fast Edward!" The two took up a defensive position outside the car and Edward sped north into the woods.

He was flying as fast as he could while carrying me on his back. Unlike normal, there was no joy for him in this run. Trees whizzed by before I could focus on them and the wind pushed in on my face like a solid object preventing me from breathing. His course became erratic, every once in a while Edward would dodge around an unseen impediment or change direction without reason. His shoulders stiffened and our course became even more unpredictable. It occurred to me that he must be able to hear them coming after us. He dodged around the woods in a desperate attempt to sneak through the circle that they had created around us. Without warning he stopped running and set me down.

"I'm so sorry, they have us trapped. Alec is still holding Jasper and Alice but Jane, Felix, and Victoria have us surrounded." He wrapped his arms around me one last time before they arrived. He kissed me passionately and I felt the same desperate need for comfort. Then, he crouched low in front of me, prepared to defend me against three other vampires with no help in sight. It was a pointless attempt. My fate was sealed the second Jane convinced Alec to leave Volterra.

Felix came into view directly in front of us. Edward was up from his crouch and collided with him like an arrow. Felix remained unmoved. They grappled for a few moments locked in each other's arms. Edward anticipated every one of Felix's moves and countered it with such speed that I could barely tell that they were moving. It looked like a pair of young kids dancing their first slow dance.

A flash of movement to my left revealed Jane who immediately focused on Edward and set him to writhing on the forest floor. I found my shield inside my mind and pulled it around him. I knew that this could cause me grave injury but I had nothing to loose. If I could cause enough damage before hand, then perhaps Edward wouldn't have to watch my torture for as long. Edward snapped back up to his feet immediately. I could feel his presence like it was a part of my own as he and Felix circled. My head screamed in pain but if he could fight for long enough then perhaps the others would come for us and we would have a chance. I also didn't want to experience what Felix had in store for me. I barely had time to appreciate the deadly grace exhibited by the two as they began an intricate and deadly dance before my concentration was violently broken.

Jane had launched herself at me causing my connection to Edward to drop with my concentration as my body skidded across dirt and leaves and tree roots. My head finally came to rest at the base of a tree several yards away from where I started. I glanced at Edward and watched for a fraction of a second while he hovered in indecision between fighting Jane and fighting Felix. I frantically tried to concentrate on the shield to protect him but failed. He once again writhed on the forest floor. Felix kicked him hard.

"Well done." A high, feminine, almost juvenile, soprano voice tinkled from behind me. I attempted to bring myself to a seated position but found myself hauled up by a set of pale, slender arms. Jane released Edward from her torment. He jumped into a crouch before realizing that there was no tactical advantage that he could find. Both of our lives were at risk. Victoria held me up by my hair.

"Let her go." Edward demanded.

"I don't think I will." Victoria gestured to Felix who captured a suddenly subdued Edward around the arms. "We're going to have a little fun, aren't we Bella?" Something struck me and I lost consciousness.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/n – The characters are once again not mine, they belong to SM. Please enjoy and review. (Warning: Today's chapter is heavy and violent.)  
**

I came to with a snap. My head came up and I searched frantically to discover where I was being held. I was lying on a smooth, slightly damp cement floor. It was dark but I could make out some shockingly mundane, human items surrounding me. In the faint glimmer of light that came from a high, tiny window I could see the outline of a washer and dryer along one wall. Shelving and boxes dominated the rest of the space. Cobwebs decorated the ceiling and shelves as well as some ancient looking lawn furniture. The realization that we were in a basement that belonged to a human family did more to upset than to comfort me. I feared what had happened to the family who lived here. The cold seeped from the wall and the floor into my body, in this particular case I didn't mind as I rolled my head to make contact between my head injury and the soothing feel of the icy floor.

"Oh, good our guest of honor is awake." I heard Jane spit from across the room. I made no effort to get up. My head felt like it was about to crack completely open. The throbbing was almost unbearable as I battled my emotions once again. I would not give them the satisfaction of watching me beg or cry.

"Time to get up." Victoria's sickeningly high soprano sounded next to me as she ripped me from the floor and forced me upright. It was then that I saw him, Edward. He was crumpled on the floor in the corner and appeared to be sleeping, which I knew to be impossible. My confusion was only momentary as I noticed Alec standing not too far off. Edward had been incapacitated.

"We won't harm him yet, don't worry. I need him alive to watch you die." Victoria's twisted face and flaming hair cut off my view of Edward. "I'm going to take my time with you little one." I steeled myself against the hours of pain that I had ahead of me. She grabbed my hands and hauled them above my head securing them to a water pipe with a rope that hung from it. I had to stand on my toes to avoid taking all of my weight on my wrists.

I heard the stairs creak not too far away from me and observed Felix descending them. His skin somewhat pallid even with its olive toned hue was exposed, as he no longer wore his robe, opting for more casual attire. Like all vampires he possessed the same inhuman beauty that could have won him a leading role on any soap opera, or in his case a mafia movie. He stalked down them with the grace of a predator. At the site of my hands bound over my head and my open eyes he smiled and winked at me. I suppressed the urge to vomit. He immediately crossed to Edward and restrained him before Alec released him from sensory deprivation. Edward only struggled for a second before he came to his senses and realized that he was being held. I attempted to meet eyes with him but he seemed unable to look at me hanging there in the damp basement.

"Edward is learning to behave himself." Jane's childish voice squeaked. Her beautiful little face shone with pride and achievement. I was unaware of what had happened while I was unconscious but Jane appeared to have tortured Edward into submission somehow. She took a sick delight in punishing people, in particular those who defied her.

Before I realized what I was doing I was struggling to get my hands free, to go to the man I loved who was so downtrodden on the floor. Then, his face contorted like it had in the woods. Felix held him still but Edward writhed in pain. I stopped struggling and focused on Edward, his safety. The pain left his face and Jane huffed. Without warning I was struck in the back so violently that I thought this might be over sooner than expected. I felt a snap inside my head as the shield came crashing back in on me. In addition to the exertion and the pain wracking my head, the blow now wracked my body.

"Bella, don't protect me. Jane isn't hurting me in any real way, you know that it's an illusion." Edward's voice was calm as he pled with me. I desperately attempted to focus my eyes on him. If I could see him, I could make it through this pain. I coaxed a blurry sort of focus on him and met his gold eyes with my brown ones. I could see his anguish at watching me in pain but I could also feel the love that he had for me. Jane let loose on him again and his eyes closed. I turned my head into my arm to avoid watching. He didn't scream, he didn't cry. Another blow landed and I lost the ability to breath for a few seconds. The pain was unbearable as I sucked and gasped for air. Eventually my lungs filled up again and I sucked air in and out frantically not knowing how long I had before it disappeared again.

"No, you must watch." Jane chastised me as she crossed the room smoothly, wisps of her hair that had escaped her bun trailing behind her. "Edward, your wife must learn to cooperate." She held my face and forced me to watch as she shocked him again. Her nails dug into my flesh but did not draw blood. Now that I had an idea of how the shield worked I had to fight myself back from reflexively protecting him.

This form of torture continued for some time. Any time I looked away or protected Edward from the pain, which was a frequent occurrence, I was struck. After many hours, what seemed like an eternity, the light outside changed from silver moonlight to the slightly pink first strains of morning sunlight. As if this was a cue, Felix released Edward who was now held by Alec and Jane. It wasn't so much that they physically held him but if he took a step he would quickly be incapacitated.

Felix stalked toward me with a deadly grace. I fought back tears and fear and he came close enough to touch me. He was what I feared most. I used what little strength I had to grab the ropes that bound my hands and swing a foot into his chest. My stomach lurched as I heard a sickening crack just before I felt my foot burn with pain. He had grabbed my foot as I swung it up to kick him and broken it. It really was an exercise in futility on my part and I couldn't fathom for the life of me why I had decided that kicking one of the strongest vampires I had ever met would be a good idea.

Now I was forced to rest all of my weight on the toes of my left foot. Undeterred and perhaps even stirred on by my foolish and weak attempt at self-defense, Felix pressed his cold body against mine. His cool temperature admittedly felt good against my overheated, swollen skin but I shuddered at the thought of it being him and not Edward who was wrapping an arm around me and easing my physical pain. His other arm traced from my waist up to my arm applying too much pressure for comfort he continued up to my wrist and freed it. Instantly I was back on my feet and I nearly fell to the side before placing all of my weight on my left. My body leaned precariously to that side as Felix too roughly yanked both of my arms behind my back and tied them to each other. I gasped in pain.

Across the room I watched Edward drop to the floor again. Jane's petite face lit with a vicious and malevolent grin. It was now Edward's turn to watch them hurt me and he was being punished for moving. She didn't shock him for long. I had long lost the awareness needed to protect him from her. Tears slid down my cheeks as a feeling of helplessness settled into my core. There was nothing I could do to spare him this anguish.

Restricted to standing on one leg I was barely able to remain upright as my body shook with shock. Blood rushed into my arms causing the pins and needles sensation that I had grown accustomed to earlier to move into a painful burning threatening to sear the flesh right off of my arms. Felix pushed me into the wall behind me causing me to have to put weight on my broken right foot or fall painfully to the floor. I winced and attempted to continue breathing as the sharp pain shot up my leg all the way through my body. My body crushed my arms into the wall in an attempt to gain a millimeter of space between the bulky vampire before me and myself. He tore my blouse effortlessly at the shoulder seam and ran his nose from my shoulder and up my neck to my ear.

"This part doesn't have to hurt you, you know that." He whispered in my ear, sweet breath washed over my face, dizzying me. "I don't have to be rough unless you and Edward fight." He ran his tongue behind my ear and I dry heaved.

My reaction angered him and he punched me in the chest. My breathing stopped entirely in spite of the fact that I was gasping desperately for air, none was coming. I tried to slow my frantic attempt to gain oxygen and eventually I could manage some weak shallow breathing. My ribcage hurt and my lungs felt sluggish.

"I don't care if you kill me, I won't go along with _this_ willingly." I could barely whisper.

Two large hands shot up and cracked my head into the wall. The sound itself made my body go limp before the pain in my head fired up with renewed enthusiasm. Somehow I remained standing. I attempted to close my eyes but every time I did Jane would send Edward down to the floor in pain. Felix's hands were cold and cruel on my body. I managed to make eye contact with Edward and held my eyes there for as long as I could. I focused solely on him. Very quickly it was apparent that my injuries were going to overcome me. My one solace in this was that perhaps this would ruin Felix's idea of fun. My body began to slump regardless of the ice-cold arm holding me upright. Right after I felt all energy leave me, my eyes closed and I lost Edward to the darkness. He cried out and was then silent. Darkness and silence overcame my very being. I floated peacefully in the dark without thought or care for what was going on around me. Then, there was an unidentifiable noise, so much of it, it was too hard to force my brain to make sense of it all. It was like wild animals fighting but there was also shouting, then deathly silence. After another eternity, there was the pain - my entire body caught fire. I could find no escape from this and prayed that death would find me soon.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/n – The characters are once again not mine, they belong to SM. Please enjoy and review. We're coming to the end of what I plan on writing for this particular story soon, just as an FYI.**

A quiet remembrance of a conversation came to me as the burning continued. I clung to it to try to make sense of why I was being cremated alive. What had I done to deserve such torment? I strained to recall the memory.

"Is she?"

"No, she's not completely gone yet. Her heartbeat is faint but it's still there."

"Jacob?"

"No!"

"There's nothing I can do."

"No, you have to save her!"

"The injuries are too great Jacob, even if we were in a state of the art trauma center right now I wouldn't be able to save her."

"Jacob, there's only one way."

"I. Can't. Let. You."

"She's my _wife_!"

"Step back son."

"No!"

"No!"

"Are you prepared to watch her die then?"

"Death would be better, it would be natural!"

"But she wanted…"

"I can't believe you're going to look on and let her die!"

"You're right – I can't…"

"Just do what you need to Edward, save her. Please save her."

"Wait, is that an agreement? We can change her in order to save her life?"

"This is your only exception."

"Agreed"

"I can't watch this."

I tried replaying it again in my mind to identify the voices. The distraction was helping to keep me from feeling the burning. The names eventually came to me: Jacob Black, Carlisle, Edward, Alice. The conversation still made no sense. Why were they burning me? Did I die? Was I trapped in a dead body being burned?

The few moments before I lost consciousness came to me as well. I had been afraid. There was danger, immediate danger! Almost at these words the pain drifted from my extremities and into my heart, it fluttered like a bird and then harder like an engine. I felt it accelerate painfully to one last beat that seemed to sustain itself for minutes and then it stopped.

Fear.

Felix.

Jane.

Alec.

_Victoria._

Hatred.

Death.

Defend.

The world seemed to whip past me as I hurtled myself up off of the smooth surface and dropped to a low crouch. I growled searching for the cause of my flight or fight response. I breathed the air in and out feeling the dust motes tickle my throat. I tasted the air to find the danger. It was thick and sweet with: cinnamon, hyacinth, pear, seawater, bread, pine, vanilla, apple, moss, leather, chocolate... Then, something more familiar, lilacs and honey struck my senses. I still had not opened my eyes.

He was in trouble. He needed me. My mind lashed out at the danger until I could sense him clearly my shield surrounded him. He was still alive. Alive. I was alive. The thoughts came blindingly fast. My mind raced to assess the danger – six. I had thought there were only four but now there were six. I didn't look because I feared that I wouldn't be able to act. Instead I listened and inhaled. I found the first without looking and launched myself instinctively at him.

The breath rushed out of me when I hit the floor.

"What the hell!" A too familiar voice boomed next to me. I continued to snap, my teeth clicking in the air against each other, confused.

"Just hold her, Emmett! She doesn't know she's safe and I can't help her until she stops fighting me!" I continued to fight against the two sets of arms holding me to the floor. For a moment confusion came to me again as the arms and the floor weren't cold. I didn't know why they should be, but they should be.

"Edward!" A female voice rang from across the room.

Edward.

Edward had meaning.

I could feel a spark called Edward that I had wrapped my shield around earlier move closer. The smell of honey and lilacs grew stronger. _He_ was Edward. My muscles relaxed of their own accord. A weight was on my chest and two hands on my shoulders. My teeth stopped snapping.

Edward.

I suddenly placed the voices and groaned in embarrassment. Six – not four… Six plus Edward was seven. There was no one else in the room. We weren't in any danger. I had attacked Emmett; he and Jasper were forced to restrain me before I let loose on the family in my crazed newborn state. My eyes stayed closed in embarrassment. I wanted to cry with relief and humiliation but no tears came. My chest heaved uncontrollably and I started sobbing. The arms holding me down let up and Edward, whom had been sitting on my chest, scooped me up, supporting my upper body. I felt an unnatural calm wash over me now that I was no longer fighting for my life.

"Are you going to open your eyes my love?" Edwards voice was familiar but better, clearer. It was impossible to think so but it was now even more velvety and rich than before with a musical quality that I couldn't place.

He was all I could see as my eyes blinked open and closed a few times. It was like I had never seen him before though. His face was still the same but somehow even more refined and perfect. He glowed ever so subtly. Then, I noticed clarity in the dim light that I knew I shouldn't be experiencing. I could distinguish individual flecks of dust in the air, what would have been subtle changes in the light before were now clear and crisp.

"Edward." I cooed in an unexpectedly musical voice that rang like wind chimes or a clear bell. "I love you." Those seemed to be fitting first words. My entire world focused in on him I had not dropped the shield from around him since I first pulled it up and as I kissed him my awareness of his body increased ten fold. I forgot about everything else. He was no longer gentle with me. At this I grabbed him, rolled him over, and held him down to the floor so easily that it was comical and kissed him deeply, thoroughly, and completely. It felt different to be the same temperature and to no longer worry about rules but it was also fantastic. The feeling of kissing him with reckless abandon was glorious. My heightened senses and the complete and utter lack of restrictions made it new and exciting. I tasted him, felt him, and smelled him for the first time. My mouth moved involuntarily to his neck and chest before he protested.

"I love you too Bella, but I think that perhaps - ."

_No talking! You'll ruin the mood._ I forced my mouth back down on his to make him stop. Suddenly he pushed me back. He looked away from me to the other side of the room for some inexplicable – reason – a reason that suddenly dawned on me. I followed his gaze to find his, no, our entire family staring at me, staring at me straddling Edward in the middle of someone's basement to be precise. If I could have blushed, my face would have been on fire. _Oh crap! No, no, that's not embarrassing. Carlisle and Esme I'm sorry, I'm only attempting to get it on with your son in front of the whole family_…

"Wait, you're not talking." Edward's face was elated. He looked at the others. "Are you hearing her say something about being embarrassed?" I shifted my gaze from Edward to a very confused bunch of vampires on the other end of the room. They shook their heads.

Awareness snapped tight around me.

"Well, now it's gone." Edward mused and looked deeply into my eyes in concentration. I cocked my head to one side and waited for the realization to dawn on me.

"You heard me think?" I blinked.

"I did." He smiled.

"Let's try it again!" I could barely contain my enthusiasm but it was short lived as he put a hand over my lips before they could reach his. I could hear Emmett and Jasper chuckling and a high five taking place. Rosalie huffed, a little disgusted.

"Bella, we're not exactly alone, and I'm not sure that you want to… well… why don't we wait for some privacy to test this out?" He was fighting back the urge to laugh. His face shone with so much more happiness than I had ever seen.

"I suppose…" I groaned and got to my feet to a chorus of laughter and offered an arm to Edward. THAT was a first. Emmett was the first in line.

"I'm so sorry I attacked you." I hugged him close; I hugged Jasper and apologized to him next. Alice flitted her way up to hug me next.

"I changed your clothes." She was practically bouncing up and down. At this looked down and realized that I was wearing a dress. The ice blue silk skimmed along my figure. I shook my head. It was a typical Alice fashion choice, completely impractical.

I hugged Rosalie and Esme. Carlisle was last. He had been observing me from the back of the line.

"How are you feeling?" Carlisle pulled back from the hug with his hands on my shoulders in a fatherly gesture.

"Very odd. There's all of this extra sensation it's very hard to focus on any one thing." The words seemed foreign coming from my mouth. I wasn't quite used to the bell-like voice that sang from my vocal chords yet.

"Are you uncomfortable?" His eyes searched mine. "Do you feel thirsty?"

"I'm not sure." My eyebrows scrunched together. "What does thirsty feel like?"

"It feels like an intense burning in the back of your throat." Edward was behind me and as he described the feeling, I suddenly realized that it was indeed there. My hand flashed to my throat faster than I thought possible.

"That's what I thought." Jasper smiled. "She just didn't know what the feeling was."

"Shall we hunt?" Edward flashed me a dazzling smile and offered me his arm.

"So soon?" I asked. "I'd like to know what happened first if we can wait."

"It's only going to get worse if you wait, and you don't want to risk anyone's safety do you?" He pulled me to a door at the far end of the basement. "Don't worry, it's instinctual, you won't mess it up."

"But.." I started and he cut me off.

"We'll meet them in the mountains when we finish. I promise this won't take long and then you can have all of the explanations you need." He caressed my cheek and I acquiesced following him out the door. I felt like he was hiding something from me but opted not to argue about it until everyone was sure that I wasn't going to fly off the handle.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/n – The characters are once again not mine, they belong to SM. Please enjoy and review. We're coming to the end of what I plan on writing for this particular story soon, just as an FYI. However, today I'm not resolving much but I will so don't feel cheated. ;-)**

***Hey um... yeah... I got a bit carried away and had to re-edit this this morning... I may have gotten a bit too descriptive... So... Here's the "T" version folks.**

The house backed up to a large forest. We ran flat out through it. Even at the speed we were running I could make out the minute texture in the bark of each tree and each individual leaf. I found that I could easily keep pace with Edward, he kept increasing speed and I kept meeting it. The wind whipped through my hair blowing it behind me in a giant fan. What made it even better was that I was suddenly graceful. I had never been graceful before. My body moved without thought; my movements were fluid. Being a vampire felt powerful, like I could do anything. I smiled for a moment before grabbing a tree limb and swinging from it. I flew through the air flipping into a somersault and landing on my feet before launching back into a run. Edward turned to me with a smile from ear to ear. He eventually slowed and we stopped.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

"I guess so…" He sensed my hesitancy and wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and squeezed me into him. The relative similarity of our skin temperature was still a surprise to me.

"There's nothing to worry about." He whispered in my ear. "Close your eyes and use your hearing to locate your prey." I listened carefully and heard the wind gently rustling leaves far above our heads, a stream far off, his breath in my ear, a pack of wolves over the next rise.

"Wolves?" I asked turning my head to him over my shoulder, more than slightly disappointed.

"Actually no, I think the wolves are endangered here so search for something else." He whispered. I attempted to block out all thought of the wolves for more than one reason. I listened a bit further out and caught a heard of deer.

"What about a herd of deer?" I asked

"That sounds like a good start." I could feel him smiling into my hair, that was what he had intended for me to locate. "I'm going to let go of your waist and I want you to stop thinking and just hunt. Don't be nervous." He let go and I launched myself over the ground heading for the herd of deer. Suddenly I caught an unexpected smell and started to follow it.

"Bella, stop!" I caught a shout from behind me.

"I just want to see.." I put up my hand and stopped running. In front of me still several yards off was an injured hiker. He was obviously bleeding; his right leg was twisted back at a painful angle and a bone broke the skin. He didn't see us. Edward was at my side holding his breath. He pulled me a little ways off in spite of the fact that I wanted to go help him immediately before making a call on his cell phone in Italian.

"So, that's what human blood really smells like." I sighed looking at him.

"You weren't hunting him?" He scrunched his face while helping me up.

"No, The smell was just familiar and I wanted to see what it was." I shook my head slightly trying to get rid of the smell as we walked away. It smelled good but not good enough to kill someone over. He studied me for a minute.

"Do you want to try the herd of deer again?" He looked a bit shocked.

"Yeah, I think we'd better." I smiled at him.

At that we hurdled ourselves back toward them. I caught one effortlessly, snapped its neck and fed. It tasted kind of like grass and leaves but it wasn't unpleasant. We hunted down a few more, I admired Edward's catlike grace as he leaped on one and fed in a fluid movement. I studied his movements and attempted to emulate them. It wasn't long before I felt too full and kind of sloshy in the middle. I caught him smiling at me and turned.

"What? Am I doing something funny?" I asked cocking my head to one side.

"No, absolutely not funny." He shook his head and came closer.

I waited for my heart rate to increase until I realized that my heart no longer beat. He touched my skin and he felt delightfully warm, comfortable. Without thought I found myself in his arms.

"I thought that everything was perfect before." He kissed my neck. "I didn't know that I was missing anything." He kissed my shoulder. "I didn't know that you could be more perfect than you were as a human, but this… You're such a natural at it that I can't believe I ever wanted to deny you this." His lips were at my mouth.

I wrapped myself around him and then I put the shield around him. The shield heightened the sensation to the point of being maddening. I started to remember our relationship from the beginning knowing that he could hear and see my dim human memories devoid of additional colors and sounds but they were beautiful.

He had always underestimated the depth of my feelings toward him but now he was going to understand and get things straight. I had always loved him this much even with my weak human heart and frailty. He had never thought it possible but it was. He would never doubt me again. I gave him every thought, every moment of our life together:

_My first glimpse of him in the cafeteria. _

_Our First Conversation_

_The Van_

_The first time he dazzled me in the cafeteria._

_Driving me home after the blood typing incident_

_Saving me in Port Angeles – that was a long one because I included everything_

_Talking in his car at Twilight the next day_

I moved on to more sensory memories and the kissing became more intense like it was spurred on by them:

_The Meadow – that first kiss_

_The second kiss in my hallway_

_Leaning against Emmett's Jeep before baseball nearly loosing my mind. While he kissed my throat, my chin, my jaw, my eyelids, my cheek, and finally my lips. Completely unable to prevent myself from going over the line pressing myself into him._ - He reenacted these motions as I remembered them with completely mind blowing results, I was almost literally panting. I had been feeling both the current sensation and the remembered one.

We eventually pulled away from each other after darkness started to fall. It was a difficult separation but he reminded me that I still wanted answers. I had forgotten all about answers and the rest of the world. We ran though the woods into the mountains where our original destination had been, the mansion where I was supposed to be changed. There, we found the rest of the family, and a visitor standing outside.

"Please explain." I turned to Edward as I stopped cold. He flew past me by several yards and came back. His expression was cautious, weighing my reaction as I stared back at him in the moonlight, silver glinting off of his skin.


	29. Chapter 29

**A/n – The characters are once again not mine, they belong to SM. Please enjoy and review. This is the end, just as an FYI. **

"Can we wait until we get down there?" He asked, and then stared down at the dark figure sitting on the steps looking at us.

"Is that Jacob Black?" I could clearly make out his features down to the irritated look on his face at this distance but I didn't believe that he had actually flown to Italy. I had expected it; I had thought that it would happen and somehow in the past week I hadn't found the time to call LaPush and find out if he had indeed come after me. I suddenly felt very guilty for ever having flirted with him. I was secretly hopeful that his crush would have stopped with my heart.

"He's why we waited to tell you what happened." Edward took my hand and led me down the hill. I was shocked not only that he had made it to Italy but the fact that he was somehow involved in our rescue was inconceivable. He had been enraged about my reinvolvement with Alice and Edward and I expected that he wouldn't let that go easily. Suddenly, I was very concerned as to how he was going to react to seeing me as a vampire.

As we neared the house Jasper and Emmett stepped out and took up a protective position between me and Jake. At first I wondered why they would be protecting me from Jake until I noticed that they were actually protecting Jake from me. He may smell bad but he was still human and they weren't going to take any chances.

"Wow, you look good, except for the eyes. Those are kind of creepy." Jacob greeted me as we came within what would be earshot for a human.

"Yeah, it's going to take some getting used to." I could hear his heart beating in his chest even across the distance. I suddenly thought about how far away Edward had been able to hear mine while I was a human. I would have blushed if I could have. "So, what brings you to Italy?" I tried to make things light.

"Well, I came to bring you home..." He trailed off. "I knew when they said you were in jail that it had to be a blood- a lie. I figured that you were in trouble. At least I was right about that part."

"Oh, no, Alice and I actually did steal a car." I nodded my head. "Now, I wasn't in jail. I was being held in Volterra by the group of vampires Alice told us about. They demanded that I either become a vampire or become dinner. I chose vampire." Jake was taking deep breaths to steady himself at this point. I had known that this transformation was going to be hard for him. I felt like we were doing pretty well though as he seemed to not be acting like I was dead.

"You got her into this!" He pointed at Edward.

"Jake, your temper." I soothed. "If you remember correctly, I actually insisted on Alice bringing me. I knew that there was danger involved and I made the choice to come anyway." I studied his face for a moment and moved closer. Emmett made a move toward me and Jasper held up a hand to stop him. Jasper and Edward were having some kind of silent exchange. Jasper had signaled that I was safe. "I know that this is hard for you, and that you're probably thinking that you've lost me but I'm still here. I'm still the same person Jake."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but it's really hard to believe that when every part of my body just wants to phase and tear your head off right now." Everyone else tensed except for me.

"You can leave if you need to, no one is stopping you." I calmly stepped back and held out an arm indicating that he was welcome to go. I trusted his self control enough to know that he wouldn't attack me without provocation. "I don't want to fight you."

"I'm not going to pick a fight with you. I'm just saying that instinctively, I _want _to." He smiled weakly.

"Do you want to go inside and get comfortable to talk? Edward said that you played a major part in our rescue and no one will tell me what happened or how you all were able to get past Alec and Jane." I folded my arms, it felt odd not having to move on a regular basis but I just did it because the rest of the family had been.

"It smells really bad in there. I'll just tell the story out here if you don't mind." Jacob turned up his nose in disgust. I remembered that vampires smell bad to werewolves the same way that werewolves smell bad to vampires.

"That's understandable." I let out a small laugh. The place was after all a kind of vacation home for the Volturi, smelling like vampires was anticipated.

"Well, I had gone to Volterra to look for you and found that you got married, thanks for the invite by the way – so glad you thought of me." I cringed at his words, there hadn't been much time for invitations or much else. "Don't worry, I still saved your life and your vampire husband's to boot. When I got there the party in the square was in full swing so it was kind of hard to track you. I eventually found where you got into the car but the decoys threw me off for a while. I ran down each road as fast as I could trying to find you, and then BAM! I ran into your little fortune telling bloodsucker friend.

I cleared my throat.

"Sorry, old habits die hard. The only problem was this little dude in a suit who was standing over her and the blond dude -"

"Jasper" I corrected.

"Anyway, she and_ Jasper_ were on the ground and it looked like he was going to tear them apart so I lunged at him and he ran rather than fighting me. These two came around and they were all like, 'a werewolf oh no'...

He must have caught Jasper's murderous expression because he stopped that description.

"So, I phased back to show your little – Alice who I was. We made a little deal that we would all fight together and I wouldn't attack them for putting you in danger – _again_. Alice called Carlisle and Emmett and they planed to run to meet up with us. So we took off after you and Edward and the other bloodsuckers, I can call them bloodsuckers, right? There's not an all out ban on the word is there?

I couldn't help but chuckle as I nodded. Jake had an interesting way with words even if his vocabulary was somewhat stunted.

"Just checking. We found where they ambushed you and I thought you were a goner but we followed the trail to this little house where they were keeping you. We heard you in the basement and I knew that we were too late. Jasper here told me that we needed to take care of the little female and the little male first, which seemed kind of like a dumb plan to me until we got in there and the female dropped him to the floor like he was dying or something. Alice took her and I went for the small male, apparently his little superpower takes longer to build than it takes a pissed off werewolf to get across a room. As soon as we had those two occupied, Edward was up and after that giant Italian dude." He suddenly turned to Edward. "I gotta hand it to you man, you are fast. Emmett came in behind us and got Victoria, apparently it's harder to escape a house than it is a mountain range but she tried."

"It was crazy, it was all happening at once. Carlisle came in and moved you out of the way but honestly I thought you were already dead Bells. You looked so broken and helpless." His tone had softened a bit as the memory of my body wasn't something he enjoyed, unlike the fight.

"We made a pretty good team and ripped those suckers to shreds in no time! I never thought that I'd fight alongside vampires but that was awesome!" Jake gave a genuine smile, I found his enjoyment of violence slightly disturbing.

"As soon as we finished, Edward, Alice and I were by your side. Dr. Fang in there said that there was nothing he could do and I was going to keep them from biting you because I didn't believe them, but then I realized that I couldn't just watch you die and that you had made a choice to be one of them. So, I stepped aside and gave them permission to bite you without breaking the treaty. Sam won't be happy when I get back and I may have to take over as Alpha since I just made a decision for the tribe but I couldn't watch you just drift away like that. I left before Edward bit you too because that's just gross.

He paused for a few seconds.

"I wanted to see you, to say goodbye, because now that you're one of them you can't come to LaPush anymore and Forks is probably off limits for a long time too. I'd have come this morning but they said they didn't know what to expect, you might try and kill me." Jacobs voice fell. After all we'd been through he didn't want to say goodbye any more than I did, even if I was a vampire.

"I wouldn't kill you, Jacob." I opened my arms to give him a hug. He approached me hesitantly and we gingerly wrapped our arms around each other. "You smell too bad." I laughed and he punched me in the shoulder as we separated. I lightly punched him back and he flinched.

"Ow! You've got an arm there Bells!" He rubbed his shoulder.

"I barely even tapped you." I defended.

"Yeah, okay" He responded raising his eyebrows.

"I guess I just don't know my own strength yet." I smiled. From the corner of my eye I could see Emmett thinking.

"Emmett, do not attack my wife." I heard Edward warn behind me.

I had just enough warning to get clear of Jacob before seeing Emmett's large form hurtling toward me. Shocked, I dropped to the ground and hurled him into the air over my back. He landed several yards away. Jacob cheered.

"Emmett, this is a bad idea." Edward reiterated.

"What, are you scared for Bella? I'm not going to hurt her bro, I've just always wanted to fight a newborn." He laughed.

"Suit yourself, but it's you I'm actually concerned about." He cringed as Emmett ran at me again. This time I pinned him down on the ground.

"Are you quite finished?" I sunk a knee into his chest. I was actually irritated at Emmett for doing this. I noticed Jasper tense up a few feet away and I calmed myself before he could intervene.

"Yeah, I'm done, can you let up before you rip my arm off." Emmett croaked from under me. I let go of his arm and stood. Jasper was staring at me confused.

"How did you do that?" His eyes were wide with shock as he walked over to me.

"How did I do what?" I scrunched my eyebrows together as he approached.

"You are aware that you have some sort of unnatural control that you're exercising. I thought that I was going to have to calm you down but you just stopped in your tracks." This frustrated Jasper, all of his experience with newborns was flying out the window.

"That's not all!" Edward remembered excitedly. "We ran across an injured hiker while hunting-"

"Ew, Bella!" Jacob groaned from the porch.

"Jake, let him finish." I rolled my eyes at the teenage werewolf.

"She didn't even have to hold her breath. She was actually trying to go over to help him!" Edward beamed at me and wrapped an arm around my waist. "I didn't let her though, no need to tempt fate. I called for help instead."

"You didn't hunt him?" Emmett was dismayed. Jasper looked sick.

"No, he didn't smell all _that_ good. Not worth killing him for." I shook my head and swallowed. I reacted a bit to the memory of the smell and I kind of wanted to taste it but my mind overrode the urge quickly.

"Cool." A quiet reply came from Jacob. He was stretching not too far away.

"Time to go?" I asked reluctantly. This was most likely the last time I would see my best friend.

"Yeah, I've got a flight to catch and a lot of explaining to do." He shrugged.

"Will you at least keep in touch?" I frowned.

"I'll send you an e-mail." Jacob nodded before stretching again and letting out a yawn. "Carlisle's got me a hotel room booked near the airport so I'd better get running. Goodbye Bells." He pulled me into a hug that suddenly didn't seem so tight. "I hope that he makes you happy." I thought I could see tears forming in his eyes so I let him go.

"Thank you for everything, Jake." I smiled sadly, "I mean it."

Jacob looked meaningfully at Edward.

"I will, I promise." Edward smiled.

Jacob Black ran off into the woods where I assume that he phased back into a wolf for the long run to the airport. I stared after his retreating form for a long time. My best friend, who saved my life multiple times was gone. I felt a small jolt of peace coming from Jasper and I turned back to my family.

"So, Mrs. Cullen, what would you like to do tonight?" Edward wrapped an arm around me and whispered seductively into my ear.

"You didn't let me finish showing you my thoughts earlier. We have a_ ton_ of history left to cover." I gave him a knowing smile. Jasper made himself scarce but Emmett let out a low noise that sounded like approval. I picked up a rock and chucked it at him without bothering to look.

"Ow!" came the yelp from across the yard.

I laughed giddily as Edward scooped me up in his arms and we made our way back to the house. Our plan was to avoid the family for just a bit longer if we could. It was our honeymoon after all.

_Fin_

**A/N So, what do you think? I reread from start to finish the other day and noticed at least one contiguity issue that I need to go take care of. So, I'll be dealing with that. I hope that you've enjoyed this little story. I've had a lot of fun writing it. Bless Stephanie Meyer, these are fun characters to work with.**


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